Easy-to -Grow Vegetables for Beginners

You’re planning your first garden. No need to be afraid, we were all beginners once. Jenna Rich, a small-scale farmer and expert in vegetable growing, will guide you through 31 easy to grow vegetables.

It can be exciting to start a new garden. It could be that you have just moved into a new house and need to start from scratch. Or, this may be the first year of backyard gardening. Regardless of your level of experience, it is sometimes best to start with the basics. Beginner gardeners can grow several types of vegetables.

Find out which hardiness zone your home is before you dig. You can then choose the best vegetables for your garden. Consider what you enjoy eating, the amount of space you have and how much you are willing to spend on your vegetables.

While I look at 31 easy to grow vegetables for beginners I hope that you will find something interesting and exciting for the upcoming garden season. Let’s get started!

Zucchini

Zucchini makes a great vegetable for beginners. Modern squash varieties are resistant to Powdery Mildew. Use drip irrigation instead of overhead. If you are growing in a protected area, consider using fans. Give each plant plenty of space to reduce disease risk.

When transplanting zucchini, follow the spacing guidelines for summer squash. This will make it easier to harvest and reduce the chance of fungal disease.

Keep in mind that cucumber beetles prefer summer squash varieties over zucchini plants when you are transplanting. Rotate these two crops because they share the same pests, and their growing times are similar.

Pie Pumpkins

It’s easy and fun to grow pie-pumpkins if you have enough space. The ‘Sugar Pie Pumpkin’, also known as the ‘New England Pumpkin,’ is the perfect size and texture to make pies, muffins, or casseroles. These pumpkins are also perfect for fall decorating and carving!

The pumpkin is only 6-7 inches wide and has a dark orange color. Pumpkins should not be grown by growers who have a short growing season as they are not frost resistant and shouldn’t be planted outdoors until the soil temperature reaches 70 degrees.

Pumpkins are members of the Cucurbitaceae, and they do not like to have their roots disturbed. When transplanting pumpkins, you should open a hole using a trowel, or even your hand. Then, place the seedling in the hole, cover it with soil and gently tamp it down.

can also be sown directly into the soil. It is important to water the seeds until they are established. Harvest pumpkins before the first frost. The stems and vines must be completely dried. Cure and store up to 3 months.

Lettuce Mix

On the market, there are several mix-and-come again lettuce that are consistently high-yielding and easy to grow. Even though lettuce can tolerate some frost and cold temperatures, it is best to wait until the threat of frost has passed before planting. This is especially true if you’re doing direct sowing. The soil temperature should be at least 60 degrees.

Cover lightly with soil and tamp it down. If the lettuce is crowded, thin it if necessary and water evenly until germination.

Most mixes mature in 20-50 days. You can pick at any time, whether you want to use individual leaves for a salad or take a lot of leaves. If you want to harvest and then come back, cut about two inches below the soil surface.

Celery

Homegrown Celery tastes so much better than what you get at the supermarket. It’s not as stringy, but it is crisp and bright. The flavor is always there.

Celery has a high water content so it needs a lot of moisture during all stages of growth. Indoors, germinate on a heatmat set at 70deg. Keep them moist during the two-three weeks that it might take for them to emerge. Transplant in May or early June, when the weather is warm enough to be comfortable. They should be planted eight inches apart.

When exposed to temperatures below 55deg for extended periods, young celery plants may begin to bolt. When hardening plants, be careful to lower the water amount but not the temperature.

Broccoli

There are broccoli varieties that produce a whole head of broccoli, as well as side shoots. Others produce a tender stalk with small florets, like “Rapini Broccoli Raab,” which is perfect for stir-fries and salads in the early season.

Planting broccoli in the spring will produce a harvest in summer, or later in summer or early autumn for harvests in winter or late fall. Give them a minimum of 18″ between plants, and use insect nets to protect against aphids and flea beetles.

Leeks

Leeks are a simple vegetable . It is important to plant them in soil that drains well and has been aerated. They should not be planted where onions were the previous year, as they are from the same family. When you plant bulbing onions indoors in spring, start seedlings. If you live in a mild climate, you can plant them in fall and then overwinter the bulbs for a spring harvest.

Compost soil lightly to heavily, and make holes with your fingertip or a pencil 3-6 inches apart. After hardening your seedlings off, place one in each of the holes and gently cover it with soil.

If you want to get a lot white on your leeks then hill them every week. The more shaft that is hidden from the sunlight, the whiter it will be. They’ll be ready to harvest in 120-150days when the “flag”, or top growth, is a dark green.

‘Hakurei’ Salad Turnips

The salad turnips ‘Hakurei” are not the turnips your grandmother grew. The Japanese turnips are usually eaten raw because of their sweet, crisp and juicy taste. They can also be roasted or baked.

They mature in just 50 days, a few days later than radishes. To suppress weeds, sow them about 1 inch apart in rows. Water them well, particularly in dry conditions, and protect them from pests by covering them with insect net. If they are overcrowded, thin them as necessary.

The ‘Hakurei” turnips contain a lot of vitamins C, E, and B6, as well as fiber and potassium. Greens can be eaten too!

Pea Shoots

Pea Shoots can be grown indoors or outdoors, all year round. You only need a tray, some seed-starting mixture, grow lights and fresh water.

Be sure to thoroughly wash pea seeds before sowing. The seeds are dirty when they come from the seed company. If you don’t wash them, they won’t germinate well or produce much.

After washing, soak the seeds for 8-24 hrs, and then leave them overnight to sprout. The process will be accelerated in warmer temperatures. Fill your tray with soil, and smooth it out.

Spread out about 1.5 cups sprouted seeds of pea shoots evenly and without overlapping. After that, lightly water them, place an empty tray over top and weight it down with a heavy object like a stone.

After 2-3 days, remove the tray and weight, place them in sunlight or direct light, and keep them damp as they grow. When the shoots are about 4 inches tall, cut them before they develop tendrils or become thick. Add them to smoothies, salads, or stir-fries. It’s a quick and easy way to add greens to your diet.

Onions

If you do not have an indoor setup, ask a farmer in your area for one or look at a garden store to see if they sell them. Select the right type of onion for your region: day-neutral, short-day or long-day. You should be able to harvest onions within 90-100days, depending on the variety.

Shallots

The shallot is like the result of combining garlic and onions. Plant them like you would long-day onion. They mature in about 100 days and can be stored for a long time.

Since they are shallow-rooted plants, they will do better in raised bed soils with good drainage. If there has been no rain, water them every week at least one inch.

The tops of the plants will also dry out and fall when ready for harvesting. Cure the tops for 2-7 days, and then store them in a dry, cool place with low humidity.

Eggplant

Growing classic globe eggplants and Asian-style slender eggplants is a delight. The Asian-style eggplant takes slightly less time to reach maturity due to its size. You will need to support the globe eggplant plants if you want them to produce fruits that weigh up between 1 1/4 and 2 pounds.

As they are tropical plants, eggplants will not tolerate frost. They perform best when planted in a warm, sunny area of your garden. Use insect netting on them to keep out Japanese beetles, cabbage loopers and other pests.

Try the ‘Dragon fennel which produces a sweet, edible bulb.

Garlic

If you’re like me, most of your cooked meals begin with freshly sauteed garlic and olive oil in a hot pan. Homegrown Garlic is the best. If you haven’t grown any before, this year should be your chance.

Garlic grows best when the soil is amended and garden beds are properly prepared. Garlic needs a lot of food and will be in the ground for quite a while, so it is important to prepare it for success. Once it is in the ground, and it has been mulched, you can leave it there until spring. It’s a great crop for beginners.

In the spring, remove the mulch, weed the area around the garlic and make any necessary amendments. Set up a schedule for watering. Don’t forget to remove the scapes in July or June to send energy back to bulb formation.

Try more than one variety of garlic and choose your favorite.

Cabbage

You can grow cabbage with little effort if you compost your beds and control weeds. It can take 100 days for cabbage to reach maturity, so be sure to give it all the nutrients that it needs. Use fish emulsion at the time you transplant the plants or after they have 3 to 4 true leaves. This feeding schedule can be repeated every two to three week.

Cabbage can withstand cold temperatures and performs well in spring and fall. You can plant out cabbages from February to May if you want summer cabbages. From April to May if you want fall or winter cabbages. In warmer regions, it is possible for the cabbages to be planted in summer.

It’s good for you. Try savoy cabbage or ferment it to make kimchi. Rotate cabbage with other Brassicas such as broccoli and kale in order to prevent a pest infestation. Cover the cabbage with insect net to keep out flea beetles and cabbage loopers.

Watermelon

Plan accordingly. Watermelons require a lot space. For growers who have limited space, there are “icebox varieties” like Sugar Baby. Fruits are ready between 60 and 90 days.

In most areas, watermelons are sensitive to cold. They should not be planted before late April. Transplant the watermelons once summer is established. Plant them under a rowcover or in a tunnel to increase heat.

About a week prior to harvesting, stop all watering. A lot of water can make the fruit taste bland. Fruits can be harvested when the tendril at the stem is dead and there is yellow color where the fruit has fallen.

Winter Squash

Winter squash is perfect for those who love to cook with storage vegetables in the winter and fall. You can choose from many different varieties, with flavors ranging from sweet, to nutty, to pumpkiny. They are great for soups, roasting, or even desserts. Under ideal conditions, some can be kept for up to six months.

If you have a limited space to grow, ‘Butternut’ would be a good choice. It grows to a gorgeous terracotta colour, and has a size of 4-5 inches. It is also practically seedless. It’s also resistant to squash vine borer and powdery mildew!

Winter squash is slow to mature. Start them indoors, and wait until soil temperatures reach at least 60 degrees. Winter squash will not tolerate even a slight frost.

Plant only one vine per bed. Give them a space of 2-3 feet. To keep pests at bay, use insect netting when transplanting. Simply remove the net once pollination starts. Every week, plants should receive an inch of water.

The fruits are ready for harvesting when the vines are almost completely dead, the stems are brown and the skins hard. Harvest them during a dry, sunny week in September or October. Allow them to cure outside for 5-7days. They should be stored in a cool, dark place. The shelf life of the product will vary depending on its variety.

Summer Squash

Summer squash have a high germination rate and are ready for transplanting about three weeks after they’ve been sown. There is a wide variety of summer squash to choose from. From crookneck and patty-pan to classic golden, buttery, smooth and nutty summer squash.

Give them enough space to bush out, and they will have plenty of nutrients. For a tasty, almost seedless treat in the early summer, harvest them small. Or, let them grow large, and then slice them into quarter-sized pieces to sauté.

It is possible to reduce damage by delaying plantings until the first generation has found another garden. Sprinkle kaolin clay or diatomaceous Earth over the foliage to deter pests.

Green Onions

You can do the same. The green onions are easy to grow, take up little space and can be interplanted with kale and Swiss chard. They may deter rabbits and deer. You can leave the plants in the ground until you are ready to use them. The flavor won’t be affected.

Green onions can be easily started indoors if you make use of cell trays. Fill a cell tray up with soil. Make small holes in the soil with a finger or a pencil. Sprinkle 3-5 seeds into each hole. Cover the holes with soil, and keep them moist up until they emerge. As mentioned above, you can plant the clumps containing 3-5 onions in a single row about 6 inches apart or wherever there is extra space.

They are tough, so just shove them into the ground. You can harvest them after 50 days, or wait longer to get a thicker-stemmed onion.

You can also plant your seeds in a way that the harvest is more evenly spaced. For a constant supply, sow half a tray every month.

Radishes

Radishes make a great vegetable for beginners, because they mature quickly and you can plant many successions within a season. You can always try again if you don’t succeed the first time. Radishes can be planted in a small area or alongside other vegetables that will last longer, such as tomatoes or zucchini. This won’t deplete the soil.

The French Breakfast radish prefers to be watered less. My favorite globe variety is the’Easter Egger Blend’because of the vibrant colors that are easy to harvest even by children and stay mild in the heat.

Radishes grow best in spring and autumn, so sow as soon as you are able to work the soil. They should be sown in rows at least an inch apart and about half an inch deep. Make sure the soil drains well.

Cover with insect netting and water regularly to prevent flea beetles and grasshoppers. As needed, thin. Once they begin to mature, check them daily and harvest regularly. If they are not checked regularly, the fruit will split and become pithy.

Jalapenos

It is best to start peppers from seeds indoors. They’re quite happy to grow large in containers as long as there are enough nutrients and room to grow. You can remove any early blooms to encourage the plant to concentrate its energy on growth rather than fruit production. Try the Megatron jalapeno, which is “mega” both in flavor and size!

Jalepenos, which are tropical plants that love heat and are heavy feeders need fertile soil in a sunny location. Peppers thrive in high tunnels with their added heat.

The plants should be separated by 18-24 inches, with one or two plants per 30 inch bed. Before transplanting peppers, make sure that the soil temperature is at least 65deg. They are sensitive to cold. Jalepenos do well in fabric bags. You will need to provide the necessary support and feed your plants.

Around the Fourth, July you should be on the lookout for tobacco or tomato hornworms. They love peppers more than tomatoes. You can spray Bacillus Thuringiensis on the pepper plants in advance if you have a problem with hornworms every year. Bt is an organically approved bacteria that kills caterpillars, loopers and other pests when consumed. If you’re looking to see sphynx moths then avoid this. The larvae are tomato hornworms.

Beets

Beets and Swiss chard are related. They both have a similar earthy taste. Swiss chard, which is a form of beet, has its energy sent aboveground, while a beet is bred to grow a large, juicy bulb beneath the soil surface. They are multi-germ seeds, like Swiss chard. You should thin the seedlings to one per cell once they have become established.

Beets are usually sown directly, even though I’ve had more success with when they’re transplanted. So I can choose the strongest seedlings, and then space them according to my preference. In a 30 inch bed, I plant multiple beets in each cell or every 3 inches.

After a few weeks, I will shallow cultivate the seeds that are between the rows. Then I will hill up the beets so as to keep them as deep as possible. I may do it again before they reach maturity, but I usually just leave them be.

The soil is lacking in boron if you see black spots or cankers appearing on your beet roots and leaves. After transplanting the next row of beets about three weeks later, add one tablespoon of Borax powder to 4L of water and stir until dissolved. This spray can cover up to 100 square feet. You can make more or less depending on your needs. Any unused solution should be thrown away.

Beets are harvested at any size. If you plan to store them for longer than three months, allow them to grow very large and remove the tops. Then store them unwashed in a cool, dark root cellar. You can also freeze them and then wash them.

Swiss Chard

Swiss chard can be a difficult crop to germinate, but it is easy to grow once it has been established. In a controlled environment, you can increase the germination rate and reduce disease by starting seeds indoors. You can also select the most attractive plants to transplant when it’s time. Try growing Swiss chard Microgreens for a tasty and quick shortcut.

The first days and weeks after chard’s birth are vital. Don’t overwater. Water only when necessary.

If you have access to a heating mat, set it between 55 and 75 degrees. Maintain a constant temperature and allow for adequate air flow. Chard seeds have multiple germs, so they will produce more than one plant in each cell. Choose the one that looks the strongest and thin out the others by cutting the stems just above the soil’s surface.

Transplant them early in the morning on a day with a lot of clouds. Once temperatures are above 50deg in the daytime and frost is not a concern, you can transplant them.

Cover them with insect nets to keep them safe from grasshoppers and spring caterpillars. Start harvesting the outside leaves once they reach about nine inches in height. As you continue to harvest, new growth will appear in the middle of the plant.

Sugar Snap Peas

Sugar snap peas germinate quickly and are easy to grow. Growing them can be tricky, as you need a fence that is strong enough to hold the heavy foliage and fruit.

The sugar snap peas live up to their name: they are sweet, crunchy and packed with peas. As soon as the soil is ready, you can sow directly outside. In places like the Northeast, it is usually the first thing to go in the ground.

Add a fence to the middle of the garden bed. Make two shallow trenches, about one inch apart. Plant the peas about one inch apart in the trenches and then cover with soil.

Snowmelt may have left enough moisture in the soil to allow seeds to germinate if you live in a snow-covered area. After germination, thin the plants as necessary and tie the tomato twine to the fence as the plants grow. In 50-70days, your plants should produce mature pea pods. Before eating, remove the string on each side of the pod.

Potatoes

Potatoes can be sown from April to June, and harvested between late August and October depending on where they are grown. Potatoes are the source of new potato plants. The “seed” potato is a piece of potato that has an eye. However, an eye isn’t necessary to successfully grow a plant. Clancy is a creamy-textured, red-to gold potato that can be grown from seeds just like other vegetables!

The pieces should be buried about 6 inches deep with the eye facing up. They can then be hilled during the sowing season and for the duration of the growing period. The potatoes will not get too much solanine. The consumption of “green potatoes” with high solanine content can be harmful.

In a trench, space potatoes 12 inches apart. You can also dig holes for each potato seed in the soil or in a cloth grow bag. The soil needs to be composted and well-draining, as potatoes are susceptible to rot if there is too much water. Straw can be added to paths to help keep weeds at bay and keep the sun away from potatoes that are starting to emerge.

If the plant is in good health, you should be able to get between five and six potatoes per plant depending on the weather conditions and the variety.

Spinach

It only takes 21-25 days to produce tender baby spinach. This is one of the earliest greens to be available, and it screams Spring. Spinach contains vitamins A, C and folate.

Direct sow spinach in spring when soil can be worked. According to research, spinach is sweeter when it’s grown in cold weather because of the lower water content within the spinach.

Use a shade cloth if you are sowing it in summer. Heat causes germination to drop dramatically. During hot spells, water spinach well.

Head Lettuce

The variety of choices available makes head lettuce a good choice for newbies. It can be grown in successions and with many other crops. There is a lettuce that will grow in your area, whether it’s cold-hardy or heat-loving. Some can even tolerate drought conditions.