What Should I Grow In My Garden
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Fresh vegetables are never better than when they're harvested right from your own backyard. Juicy tomatoes, snappy green beans, and crisp cucumbers are just some of the best vegetables to grow in your garden this year. Best of all, you don't need a huge yard to learn how to start a vegetable garden! Containers on your patio, deck, or balcony are great homes for your plants too. If you're feeling really ambitious, you can even grow seeds indoors a month or two before you plan on planting them in the ground to get a head start.
To get the best harvest possible, you'll want to make sure your garden or pots receive eights hours of direct sunlight, or they won't produce. Also, remember that some plants like different temperatures! Peas, for instance, like chilly weather and can be planted in early spring. But if you're wondering how to grow tomatoes, these heat lovers can't be set out until after the last frost. (If you're not sure when that is, check with your local university coop extension service so you won't put your young plants out too soon!) And if you're growing plants such as squash, which need pollinators to form fruit, don't forget to plant some flowers too. There are plenty of spring flowers and even edible flowers to add to your garden!
Now, pull on your gardening gloves and break out your gardening tools for these easy vegetables to grow.
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Lettuce
Gourmet greens often get icky fast in the fridge. Instead of picking them up at the store, plant your own and you can harvest some leaves right before dinner. Lettuce likes cool weather and grows well when planted as seeds. It's also a great choice for planting in pots and window boxes because the roots are shallow. Keep the plant moist as the seeds sprout, then harvest when leaves are a few inches long. If you like variety, choose a mesclun mix which includes several different types of lettuce in one seed packet.
When to plant: Early spring or late summer for a fall harvest.
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Tomatoes
You can grow heat-loving tomatoes from seed, or if you prefer, you can choose transplants, which you'll find at local nurseries or online. Pay attention to what type you're buying: Indeterminate types keep growing and producing until a frost, so their sprawling vines need to be staked—this means they're not great in containers because they get top-heavy. Determinate types have fruit that ripens in a short period of time—they'll stay about three to four feet tall. Cherry tomatoes are best for beginners, and many new varieties stay nice and compact so they're ideal for planting in containers.
When to plant: After all danger of frost is past.
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Beans
Beans come in tons of varieties, and they're prolific (plus, the more you pick, the more they produce!). Sow seeds directly in the ground because transplants don't usually do well. Look for pole beans, which need plenty of space and a trellis to climb, or bush beans, which grow in a more compact form, so they'll work in containers. Read the seed label to find "days to maturity" so you know when to harvest specific types—you don't want to wait too long because they'll get tough.
When to plant: After the last frost.
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Peppers
Peppers love the heat, and they grow well in beds, containers, or on sunny patios and decks. Transplants are a better choice unless you have time to start them indoors about six to eight weeks before the last frost. Most peppers need staking, so make sure you have enough space.
When to plant: After the last frost.
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Strawberries
Even though strawberries aren't a vegetable, you'll want to plant them in your garden too! Strawberries are a perennial crop, so they'll come back year after year. Make sure the type you buy is suited to your USDA Hardiness Zone and is considered ever-bearing, meaning it will produce fruit all summer long. Strawberries are a great choice for containers. There also are new compact, thornless varieties of raspberries and blueberries, which are small shrubs that keep a nice, tidy shape yet yield tons of fruit. Berries are easiest to grow when they're from transplants.
When to plant: Early spring.
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Herbs
Even if you only have a tiny balcony, you can still grow fresh herbs! It's so much fun to snip off a few leaves for every meal, and it's much cheaper than buying those pricey packages at the store. Herbs grow equally well in containers or beds. You can grow most from seed, but if you're in a hurry, they're not super-expensive to purchase as transplants. Better yet, some herbs, such as chives, sage, and thyme, are perennial and will return next spring.
When to plant: Mid-spring.
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Cucumbers
Most cucumber types are heat-loving vines, so you'll need some space to grow them. You also can provide a cage or trellis for them to climb vertically, which will take up less room in your garden. Look for round, yellow, miniature, or compact varieties. It's best to plant seeds directly in the ground as transplants can be fussy.
When to plant: After all danger of frost is past.
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Swiss Chard
This beautiful green has long, elegant leaves with brightly-colored ribs of red, yellow, orange, or white. Swiss chard is not only delicious—it looks beautiful! It grows well from seed, so you can plant it directly in your garden. In hot climates, if you give it some afternoon shade, it will produce all the way until the first frost. In the rest of the country, you can pick the outer leaves and it will keep producing throughout the season.
When to plant: Mid-spring.
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Kale
This super-food is incredibly hardy and doesn't mind the cold one bit. In fact, many types will survive the winter and green up again in the spring. Kale does best in beds, and seeds or transplants are fine (though seeds are cheaper). If you're tight on space, however, you can plant it in containers and harvest it as baby kale when it's young and tender.
When to plant: Mid-spring or late summer for a fall harvest.
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Summer Squash
Most squash are super easy to grow—you'll probably end up with tons to share with friends and family! Summer squash comes in a variety of sizes and types, but they mostly grow on vines that need room to spread. They do well when planted from seed or as transplants (though young plants don't like their roots disturbed when planting, so be careful when setting them out). Bear in mind that these veggies love heat! Pick them before they get gigantic or they'll become too seedy.
When to plant: After all danger of frost is past.
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Eggplant
Eggplant is a heat lover, and newer types are more compact and bushy so they can be planted in containers or beds. Look for fun varieties that produce long, slender, or even ball-shaped eggplants. Keep in mind that most need will need staking. It's best to use transplants unless you've started these indoors about eight weeks beforfe the last frost.
When to plant: After all danger of frost is past.
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Peas
Peas prefer chilly weather, so if you get peas in the ground too late, they'll often grow but won't produce. As soon as the ground can be worked, it's fine to plant pea seeds. Give them something to climb, and plant successive rows so you'll be able to harvest them for a few weeks before it gets too hot and the plants fade. And one last tip: After you yank out the spent peas, plant a different crop in that space to finish out the growing season.
When to plant: Early spring.
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Spinach
Spinach is another cool weather lover, so plant these seeds as soon as the ground can be worked—they don't even mind light frost! But don't procrastinate: If you sow it too late in the season, it will "bolt" or go to seed in a hurry. If you live in a hot climate, look for more heat-resistant varieties. Pinch off baby leaves from the outside, or let it mature to use for sautéing or in salads.
When to plant: Early spring.
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Garlic
You won't believe how easy garlic is to grow until you try it! It's one of the first things to pop up in early spring. There are two basic types. First is softneck, which consists of many cloves and stores longer. The second is hardneck, which produces curly "scapes" you can harvest in late spring, then bulbs in mid-summer. Plant individual cloves of bulbs in the ground with the pointy-side up in fall. By late spring or early summer of the following year, it'll be ready to harvest when the greenery has turned yellow and flopped over.
When to plant: Mid to late fall before the ground freezes.
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Scallions
Scallions, or bunching onions, are easy to grow from seed or bulbs (also known as "sets"), which you can expect to mature more quickly. These do better in the ground than in containers. Make sure to plant them a few inches apart to give the bulbs room to form.
When to plant: Early spring.
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What Should I Grow In My Garden
Source: https://www.thepioneerwoman.com/home-lifestyle/gardening/g35888049/best-vegetables-to-grow/#:~:text=Lettuce%2C%20tomatoes%2C%20beans%2C%20and%20more.&text=Fresh%20vegetables%20are%20never%20better,in%20your%20garden%20this%20year.
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