Everyday Leafy Greens

These are the most popular daily staples found in almost every home and local market.

  • Rape: An extremely popular green, similar to collard greens, usually boiled and stewed with tomatoes and onions.
  • Covo: A type of tree kale that is highly favored for its quick growth and tender leaves.
  • Chomolia: Also known as chomoiller, this is a leafy green related to cabbage but without forming a tight head.
  • Cabbage: Grown widely across the country; widely consumed in stews or as coleslaw.
  • Spinach: Grown in both domestic gardens and commercial farms.

Indigenous & Traditional Vegetables

These are highly nutritious and hold deep cultural significance, often foraged from the wild or grown in rural gardens.

  • Mowa: Known in English as wild spinach or amaranth, these tender leaves are a traditional delicacy.
  • Tsunga: A variety of wild mustard that offers a slightly bitter, peppery flavor.
  • Nyevhe: Spider flower leaves, usually prepared by boiling and sun-drying to preserve them for the off-season.

Commercial & Export Crops

These vegetables are extensively cultivated for the domestic supermarket industry as well as for international export.

  • Nightshades: Such as tomatoes.
  • Legumes: Sugar beans, cowpeas (munyemba), and fine beans.
  • Root Vegetables: Carrots and beetroot.
  • Cucurbits: Pumpkins (and pumpkin leaves, known locally as muboora), butternuts, and gem squash.
  • Alliums: Onions and garlic.
  • Fruiting Vegetables: Green peppers (capsicum), eggplants, okra, and chillies.