Wavewright, you like jicama! So do I and it will grow here most years if I get it started well before the last frost in a folded paper pot so that I can just put the whole thing into the garden without disturbing the roots so it can just keep growing. The bit I find hardest is persuading people that the part you eat is only the tuber, and those tasty looking beans are in fact poisonous. I use the slivered tubers in stirfry if I don’t have water chestnuts, or put them raw in a salad. Yummy and good for you!
Vulpes, the nice thing about setting up raised beds is that you can use them again next year, so the cost can spread out a bit. And sprouted seeds are wonderful! When I was on the road for months or sometimes years at a time I would carry several small jars of sprouting seeds in my backpack, set them in the light when I stopped, and have a steady supply of fresh crunchy greens. Probably kept me from scurvy a few times. My favourites were alfalfa, red clover (The most delicious), buckwheat, fenugreek (nice and spicy), sunflower and white clover.