Easy Vegetables to Grow in Your Garden

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Inside: Learn about easy vegetables to grow in your garden and how to choose which ones you should grow.

Now that you’ve decided to start a garden, you need to choose some easy vegetables to grow in your garden.

First, only choose vegetables to grow that you actually like to eat. It is a waste of time and garden space to grow vegetables that your family does not enjoy.

Secondly, if this is your first garden, I recommend choosing easy-to-grow vegetables. Make a list of your family’s favorite veggies to eat and compare it to the list below of vegetables that are easy to grow.

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Easy Vegetables to Grow

Some easy crops to grow in your first year or two are:

Vegetables to Stay Away From

There are a few crops to stay away from if you are starting out or don’t have a lot of space. I’ve also included the reasons they don’t make good starter crops.

  • Corn – It is wind-pollinated so you need at least 4 rows to get a decent crop. It also takes up a good bit of room to get your 4 rows. And corn takes lots of nutrients from the soil so you will need to do a soil test and add amendments at the end of the season.
  • Cantaloupes and watermelons – They take an enormous amount of space for their vines to spread out. So if you are growing a small garden, it’s really not worth the space to grow these melons.
  • Pumpkins – I don’t recommend growing pumpkins your first year or two either because they are space hogs like cantaloupes and watermelons and getting the timing right for a fall harvest can be tricky.
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Should You Buy Plants or Seeds?

If this is your first garden, I recommend purchasing plants for most of your garden, as starting most plants from seed needs some specialized equipment (a grow light).

The exceptions to this are summer squash, zucchini, and bush beans. All three are very easy to start from seed directly in the garden.

If you are trying carrots, they need to be sown directly in the ground also, as they don’t transplant well.

When you start to look through seed catalogs or go to a garden center, it is going to be very tempting to buy lots of varieties of each vegetable. However, you need to keep the size of your garden area in mind as you select your vegetables to grow.  (And if this is your first garden, it’s best to START SMALL!)

Most plant tags and seed packets will tell you how far apart to place your plants. I have found that if you are using beds you can usually get away with spacing the plants just a little bit closer.

Most garden centers and home improvement stores will carry varieties that are suited to your region so it may be easier to purchase your seeds and plants locally.

Find Your Last Expected Frost Date

Before you head to the store to pick out your veggies, you also need to know your expected last frost date. You can plug your zip code into this calculator to determine that date.

Lettuce, spinach, peas, and most cole crops (broccoli, brussels sprouts, cauliflower, etc.) need to be planted in early spring, about 4 weeks before your last frost.

Summer crops such as tomatoes, squash, beans, and peppers, will not survive even a light frost. They should not be planted until AFTER your last expected frost.

So, make out a list of vegetables you think you’ll want to plant. Then we will look at making a garden plan to ensure you have space for everything you want to grow.

Have you grown a garden before? I would love to know whether you grow a large garden, just a few vegetables, or if you have never gardened before and are hoping to start.

Meet Julie

I’m a farm girl born and bred in North Carolina. I’ve been growing a vegetable garden for over 20 years (and helping my Mom grow hers even longer). I’ve been raising chickens in my bathtub and backyard for 12+ years. I believe that homegrown food can be made simple. Let’s get started.

Easy vegetables to grow
This list of easy vegetables to grow will help you decide what to plant in your backyard garden.

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2 Comments

  1. Great ideas to keep in mind. I especially like where you list the vegetables that are easier to grow than others. That is super helpful to a non-green thumb such as myself. Funny story…we tried sweet potatoes two summers ago. And though they grew awesome, they spread everywhere choking out all our beautiful tomato plants! Lesson learned the hard way!