by Jennifer Poindexter.
Do you enjoy gardening but find you lack the patience for it at times? Maybe you’re someone who needs fresh vegetables quickly.
Regardless of the category you fall under, you’ll be pleased to know there are some vegetables that naturally produce faster than others.
They can also be grown in a variety of planting zones and over multiple seasons. If you’d like to fill your garden with fast growing vegetables, here are the crops you should lean towards growing.
1. Radishes
If you need a crop to grow quickly, radishes are where my mind goes first. Some varieties can be ready for harvest in as little as three weeks.
You should wait until the root is approximately an inch in diameter. Once it hits this milestone, it’s ready to be dug up and enjoyed in a variety of ways.
2. Beets
Beets are one of those crops that you either love or you hate. If you enjoy eating beets, you’ll be glad to know they can be harvested in two months.
Not to mention, you get two products out of one plant when growing beets. You can enjoy the beet, but you can also enjoy the greens. If you’d like your beets to grow larger, leave them in the ground past the two-month mark, but begin enjoying the greens while you wait.
3. Broccoli
Broccoli is a crop some people love to grow, and others feel like you don’t get enough bang for your buck. If you’d like to try growing broccoli, it can be ready for harvest beginning at about three and a half months.
Be sure to harvest the heads while they’re still brightly colored and compact. You can enjoy your harvest raw, steamed, or even freeze it for later use.
4. Broccoli Rabe
Broccoli Rabe is a unique vegetable some might be unfamiliar with. The plant itself resembles a cross between a leafy green vegetable and small broccoli.
This vegetable is ready for harvest approximately one month after planting. You can cut the entire plant off at ground level or harvest a few leaves at a time.
5. Cucumbers
Are you a fan of pickles? Do you enjoy fresh cucumber on your garden salad? If so, you should consider growing your own.
One cucumber plant will produce enough for a family of four to enjoy them in a variety of ways. You can begin enjoying them in as little as two months after planting.
6. Small Carrot Varieties
I love to grow carrots. They make wonderful container plants, require little care, and are easy to harvest as well.
If you’d like to have fresh carrots for a garden salad, to enjoy as a snack, or to cook as a side dish, you can begin harvesting them as little as two months after planting. Be advised, if you want a quick harvest, grow smaller carrot varieties because they take less time to form.
7. Green Onions or Scallions
Green onions and scallions are basically the same. The main difference is their age. A scallion is much younger and doesn’t have as large of a bulb.
Therefore, if you grow scallions indoors from kitchen scraps, you can harvest more within four or five days. If you plant green onions, they can be harvested in three to four weeks.
8. Turnips
Turnips are another great crop to grow. Not only does they produce quickly, but you get more than one product from each plant.
If you like the root vegetable, the turnip, you can begin enjoying it within two months after planting. You can also enjoy the turnip greens anytime they reach a good size for picking. You may want to keep in mind the younger the green, the more tender they are.
9. Kale
Everyone should attempt to grow and enjoy kale in their home garden. Why? Because kale is considered a superfood.
This crop is packed with vital minerals and nutrients our bodies need. It doesn’t take much of this vegetable to get the vitamins we need in a day. You can have your own kale harvest in approximately two months from time of planting.
10. Mustard Greens
I’m a greens fan. I like most kinds, and I enjoy them cooked with seasonings added to it. They make a tasty side dish that I don’t have to feel guilty for eating.
If you like the spicy flavor of mustard greens, you’ll be glad to know that they’re easy to grow. Plus, you can begin harvesting them a month and a half after planting.
11. Lettuce
Lettuce is an item I refuse to buy from a grocery store. It’s easy to grow, can be grown in a container, and does well during most parts of the year.
Therefore, I don’t see the point in spending money on it. If you’d like fresh lettuce growing around your home, you won’t need to wait long. Lettuce can be harvested anywhere from thirty to sixty days from planting. Leaf lettuce grows faster than head lettuce which explains the variance in harvest time.
12. Arugula
The first time I grew arugula, I didn’t know what I was growing. Imagine the pleasant surprise when I got a fast-growing crop that had a nice peppery flavor when eaten.
If you’d like to grow a leafy green that’s different from typical lettuce, arugula could be for you. This crop can be harvested within a month.
13. Cress
Cress is a microgreen which can be grown in a container or in a garden bed. This small green is packed full of nutrients our bodies need.
It comes in different varieties. Garden cress is ready for harvest in less than a month. Watercress can take two to three months. There’s another variety known as curly cress which takes approximately two months to be ready for harvest.
14. Spinach
Spinach was the first plant I ever grew. I still love it because it’s fast growing, cold-tolerant, and contains many vitamins and nutrients our bodies desire, especially during the colder seasons.
If you need a wintertime pick-me-up, consider growing spinach. This crop will be ready for harvest within four to six weeks.
15. Bush Beans
Every year it’s a discussion around my house whether we’ll grow running beans or bush beans. I always vote bush beans. They’re tender and make it much easier to keep my garden neat since they remain in a bush form.
If you love green beans and would like them as quickly as possible, consider a bush bean variety. They begin producing a harvest within two months. In most planting zones, you might have time to have a second or third planting of bush beans in a single year.
16. Summer Squash
If you’ve ever grown summer squash, you know it doesn’t take many plants to receive quite the harvest. We usually plant two or three to feed our family of four during the warmer months.
Summer squash is an easy plant to grow. You don’t need to start the seeds indoors unless you have an extremely short growing season. Plus, you can receive a harvest from this crop in as little as six weeks. Be aware, once it starts producing, you might need to become creative to use such an abundant harvest.
17. Bok Choy
Bok choy is a Chinese cabbage. It doesn’t form heads. Instead, it bunches similar to romaine lettuce. This vegetable can be used in a variety of recipes, and you can begin enjoying the greens before the plant is finished growing.
If you like tender, young bok choy leaves, they’re ready for harvest in approximately a month after planting. You can harvest the entire plant within two months.
18. Snow Peas
Snow peas are one of the most fuss-free pea varieties out there. There’s no shelling involved. Instead, you pick the pea and eat the pod, too.
This vegetable is frequently used in stir-fries for a touch of flavor, color, and nutrition. You can begin enjoying snow peas in approximately two months from the time of planting.
19. Okra
I love okra. It’s delicious sauteed and especially fried. If you enjoy the delicious flavor of okra, too, you’ll be glad to know you can enjoy the harvest sooner rather than later.
Okra begins to produce a harvest within two months from the time of planting. When the pods are about three inches, they’re ready to be picked and enjoyed.
Some people stay away from gardening because they think it’s a long, drawn-out process to get vegetables they could pick up at the grocery store in a day. This list proves gardening doesn’t need to be a long process.
In fact, there are quite a few crops that can be grown in a garden that will produce a harvest in three months or less. Not to mention, you know what the plants have been exposed to, and the flavor is amazing. If you’re interested in gardening but would like a fast harvest, start with some of the above options and see what you think.
Learn More About Fast Growing Vegetables
https://extension.umn.edu/vegetables/growing-radishes
https://hgic.clemson.edu/factsheet/okra/
http://sonomamg.ucanr.edu/Food_Gardening/Feature_Vegetables/Rapini_Broccoli_Raab/
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