What To Grow

Deciding what to grow is the most exciting step in planning your garden. It sets the stage for a whole season of growth and harvest. This choice can feel overwhelming with so many options available. But by focusing on a few key factors, you can select plants that will thrive in your specific space and bring you joy.

Your success starts with understanding your garden’s conditions. Then, you can match plants to those conditions for the best results.

This list isn’t about rare or difficult plants. It’s about reliable, rewarding choices that work for most gardeners. We’ll break them down by category to help you plan your beds.

Vegetables for Reliable Harvests

Start with vegetables that give you a lot of food for the effort. These are typically easy from seed and produce over a long period.

Leafy Greens (Lettuce, Kale, Spinach): You can harvest leaves as needed. They grow quickly, especially in cooler spring and fall weather. Plant a few seeds every two weeks for a continuous supply.
Summer Squash (Zucchini): One or two plants will feed a small family. They need full sun and consistent water. Be ready to pick them often when they start producing!
Tomatoes: A garden favorite. Choose cherry types for containers and early ripening. For larger fruits, try reliable varieties like ‘Roma’ or ‘Celebrity’. They need a sunny spot and support from a cage.
Root Crops (Radishes, Carrots): Radishes are the fastest, ready in about a month. Carrots take longer but are sweetest when grown in loose, stone-free soil. They’re perfect for teaching kids about gardening.
Beans: Bush beans don’t need a trellis and produce a lot in a small space. Pole beans grow vertically, saving ground space and producing all season. Just give them sun and water.

Herbs for Flavor and Fragrance

Herbs are perhaps the most rewarding plants. They’re often pest-resistant, need little room, and make your food taste amazing.

Basil: Loves heat and sun. Pinch off the flower heads to encourage more leafy growth. It’s perfect with tomatoes.
Rosemary, Thyme, Oregano: These are perennial in many areas. They prefer drier soil and lots of sun. You can use them fresh or dry them for winter.
Parsley and Cilantro: These are cool-season herbs. Cilantro bolts (goes to seed) quickly in heat, so plant it in spring or fall. Parsley is more patient and will last longer.
Mint: Grows vigorously—sometimes too vigorously! It’s best planted in a pot to contain its roots and prevent it from taking over a garden bed.

Flowers that Do Double Duty

Flowers aren’t just pretty. They attract pollinators to help your vegetables produce fruit, and some even repel pests.

Marigolds: Their strong scent can deter certain pests like nematodes and aphids. They’re easy from seed and bloom non-stop.
Nasturtiums: The entire plant is edible, with a peppery taste. They attract aphids away from your veggies, acting as a “trap crop.”
Sunflowers: They bring in bees and birds. Choose pollen-rich varieties (not the pollenless cutting types) for the best bee benefit.
Calendula: Also called pot marigold, its petals are edible. It’s a cool-season flower that often self-seeds, coming back year after year.

Factors to Consider Before You Plant

Now that you have some ideas, let’s make sure they’ll work in your garden. Asking these questions will save you time and disappointment.

How Much Sun Does Your Garden Get?

Sunlight is the most important factor. Watch your space for a full day. Count the hours of direct sun.

Full Sun (6+ hours): Needed for tomatoes, peppers, squash, beans, and most herbs.
Partial Sun/Shade (3-6 hours): Good for leafy greens, some herbs like parsley, and flowers like impatiens.
Full Shade (Less than 3 hours): Stick to ornamentals like hostas or ferns. Most edible plants won’t produce well here.

What is Your Garden’s Soil Like?

You don’t need perfect soil, but you should know what your working with. Is it heavy clay, sandy, or something in between?

Do a simple test: Grab a handful of damp soil and squeeze it. If it forms a tight, sticky ball, it’s clay. If it falls apart immediately, it’s sandy. A crumbly ball that holds then breaks apart is loam—ideal.
Improve any soil: Add compost. It helps clay drain better and helps sandy soil retain water and nutrients. Just mix a few inches into your beds each season.

How Much Space Do You Really Have?

Be realistic. Overcrowding leads to poor air circulation and disease.

Containers & Patios: Choose compact varieties. Look for words like “bush,” “dwarf,” “patio,” or “container” on seed packets. Herbs, lettuce, cherry tomatoes, and radishes are great.
Small Beds: Use vertical space. Grow pole beans, cucumbers, and small squash on trellises. This frees up ground space for other plants.
Large Plots: You have room for sprawling plants like winter squash, corn, or a dedicated asparagus patch. Remember to leave paths for access.

What’s Your Climate and Season Length?

Check your “last frost date” in spring and “first frost date” in fall. The days between are your growing season.

Short Seasons: Choose fast-maturing varieties. Focus on cool-weather crops (peas, lettuce, radishes) and use transplants for tomatoes and peppers to get a head start.
Long, Hot Seasons: You can have succession plantings. After harvesting spring peas, plant beans. After early lettuce, plant heat-loving okra.

Your Simple Garden Planning Steps

Make a Wish List: Write down everything you’d love to grow based on what you like to eat and see.
Check Your Conditions: Cross off items that need much more sun or a longer season than you have. This is the hardest but most important step.
Start Small: It’s better to care for five plants well than twenty poorly. Choose 3-5 vegetables, 2-3 herbs, and 1-2 flower types for your first year.
Draw a Simple Map: Sketch your space. Place tall plants (corn, sunflowers) on the north side so they don’t shade shorter plants. Group plants with similar water needs together.
Source Your Plants: Buy seeds or young transplants from a local garden center. Local transplants are often already adapted to your area’s climate.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

Everyone makes mistakes, but you can learn from these common ones.

Planting Too Early: Warm-season seeds won’t germinate in cold soil, and transplants can be stunted or killed by frost. Patience is key.
Overwatering: More plants die from too much water than too little. Let the top inch of soil dry out before watering again. The leaves might wilt slightly in midday heat, which is normal.
Ignoring Pest Signs: Check the undersides of leaves regularly. Catching aphids or caterpillars early makes control much easier, often just with a spray of water or hand-picking.
Forgetting to Harvest: Regular harvesting tells plants to keep producing. If zucchinis get too big or lettuce bolts, the plant thinks its job is done.

FAQ

What are the easiest things to grow for beginners?
Start with radishes, leaf lettuce, bush beans, zucchini, and herbs like basil and mint. They have high success rates and give quick feedback.

What should I grow in a shady garden?
Focus on leafy greens like spinach, kale, and lettuce, which handle partial shade well. Herbs like parsley and cilantro can also work. For flowers, try coleus or begonias.

How do I choose what to plant in my vegetable garden?
Grow what you and your family like to eat. Consider your available space and sunlight. Then, select a mix of quick growers (radishes) and longer-season plants (tomatoes) for continuous harvest.

What are good plants for a low-maintenance garden?
Perennial herbs (rosemary, thyme), flowers like marigolds and nasturtiums, and vegetables such as kale and Swiss chard which are pest-resistant and keep producing.

Choosing what to grow is a personal journey that gets easier with each season. By matching plants to your garden’s light and space, and starting with a manageable selection, you’ll set yourself up for a truly thriving garden. The best garden is the one that brings you outside, gets your hands dirty, and provides something—whether it’s a snack, a bouquet, or simply peace of mind—that you enjoy.