The First 8 Crops To Grow in a Vegetable Garden
You’ve seen grocery store prices sky-rocketing. You’ve heard that homegrown food is more nutritious than food from a grocery store. You’ve decided that this is your year to start a garden. But you have no idea what to do or how to proceed. If that’s you, you’re in the right place!
This post is designed to help you get the basics down about growing eight easy crops that will make a huge difference in your food budget and nutrition. Keep reading to learn my favorite varieties, common pests and diseases, and planting tips about the following crops:
Greens
Green Beans
Onions
Tomatoes
Peppers
Carrots
Cucumbers
Summer Squash
#1 Crop: Greens
Favorite Varieties: Chard (Bright Lights), Spinach (Bloomsdale), Kale (Kaleidoscope mix, Russian Red, or Green Curly)
Common Problems: Deer and Pests can quickly nom off your crop if you’re not paying attention!
When/How to Plant: Direct sow a few weeks before your last frost. Most greens can handle colder temperatures, though they’ll take longer to germinate and grow when planted early. Sow additional rows every week or two for successful succession planting.
Whether you’re growing spinach, lettuces, kale, chard, or any other type of green, this is the #1 best way to start gardening. You can plant as much or as little as you want, and greens typically grow extremely well in containers. So for all my “not on a huge piece of property yet” people, you can still grow a shocking amount of greens. This makes greens one of the most cost-effective plants to grow for food.
#2 Crop: Green Beans
Favorite Varieties: Jade, Kentucky Wonder, Blue Lake
