Insanely Easy and Rewarding Vegetables Even Beginners Can Grow Successfully

We love gardening and growing our own food! After years of successes and failures with so many vegetable varieties, we are going to share with you today 16 easiest to grow vegetables that are also very productive and fast growing.

If you are a first time beginner gardener, or have a small space garden, these vegetables are great choices to start your vegetable garden. Many of them are easy to grow from seeds, and produce well in pots and containers.

1. Lettuce

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If you have a small patio or balcony, lettuce is one of the best vegetables for container gardening. Like Arugula, lettuce is also a fast growing cool-season vegetable . We love to grow mixed heirloom varieties with different colors and textures!

2. Arugula

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Arugula is so easy to grow that you can literally throw some seeds in the soil or pots, water it, and have your harvest in 30 days!  We always seed them in small patches in our garden every month from September through May. In cold winter climates, you can grow Arugula in winter in a simple DIY greenhouse or cold frame.

3. Kale

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Kale is super nutritious and grows easily in containers and in garden beds. In mild winter climates they can grow year round. They are also very cold hardy, and the leaves turn sweeter when temperatures get colder. The 3 popular varieties are Lacinato kale, also called Tuscan kale or Dinosaur kale, shown in photo with Curly kale, and Red Russian kale.

4. Bok Choy and other tender leafy greens

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These tender leafy greens popular in Asian cooking are all in the cabbage family. They are fast growing, easy to grow from seeds, and great for container vegetable gardens.

5. Potatoes

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Once you learn a few important basics about growing potatoes in pots or in garden soil, you can easily grow 10 or more potatoes from 1 seed potato!

6. Cucumbers

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Cucumber are so easy to grow, but we do have two tips here: First, choose better tasting varieties, such as the crunchy and flavorful Suyo Long or China Jade. Second tip: grow your cucumbers on trellis to keep the fruits off the soil. Here are 15 best easy cucumber trellis ideas for you!

7. Beans

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Bush beans and pole beans are among our must-have warm season crops. Bush beans are fast growing and pole beans are more productive but need good vertical support. A bean tee-pee is one of the best DIY garden trellis ideas.

8. Tomatoes

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We always grow a mix of cherry tomatoes and larger tomatoes in our garden each year. Choose varieties that are suitable for your climate and grow space. Here’s our secrets on how to grow 100 lbs of tomatoes in just 20 square feet.

9. Cabbage

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Cabbages form tight heads which makes them great for small space gardening. There are lots of varieties of cabbages with different shapes, sizes and flavors. Early varieties can be ready for harvest in less than 2 months. We prefer to start seeds in pots first, then transplant the seedlings into the garden.

10. Radish

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Radishes are great cool weather crops for spring and fall planting. Radishes do not like to be transplanted. Plant seeds directly in the garden. Smaller radish varieties such as French Breakfast or Easter Eggs are fast growing and ready to harvest in 4 to 6 weeks. The bigger Asian radishes such as Daikon are great for fall planting and winter harvest.

11. Beets

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Like radishes, beets are some of the easiest root vegetables to grow. They are easier than carrots, and very productive. Both the leaves and roots are delicious in salads and stews. Direct seed beets in spring and fall for many months of harvest.

12. Swiss Chard

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If you love spinach, try the much easier to grow cousin: Swiss chard! They are in the same family, but Swiss Chard can take more heat and cold, is much more productive and equally delicious.

13. Broccoli

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Broccoli is one of our favorite vegetables to eat and to grow. They are a lot easier than Cauliflowers. As long as you give them plenty of room and good rowing conditions such as raised beds, you will have a great harvest. 

14. Zucchini

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Even if you are a first time gardener, you will likely be bombarded by a big zucchini harvest. Keep your zucchini plants well watered and give them plenty of room to grow. You only need a few plants, because they are some of the most productive vegetables in the summer garden.

15. Winter squash

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In addition to the popular butternut and spaghetti squash, we also like to grow other sweet and delicious winter squash varieties such as buttercup, Sweetmeat, Blue Hubbard, etc. They are very easy to grow when given plenty of room, and great for long winter storage.

16. Peppers

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There are countless varieties of peppers you can grow from seeds. So always ask, and be adventurous. Bell peppers tend to require a bit more care than hot peppers. Choose varieties that are productive for your climate.

Happy growing!

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