Beginner-Friendly Easy to Grow Vegetables

Have you ever wanted to start a vegetable garden, but felt completely lost about what to grow?

Here at Home Garden Joy, I specialize in making gardening fun and easy for beginners. Sometimes, the gardening information available is scary. It reads like a cross between chemistry class and a foreign language.

Well, I’m here to tell you that doesn’t have to be the case. Gardening can be fun. I’ve put together this list of easy-to-grow vegetables for beginners to help you get started.

I divided these vegetables into cold and hot weather so you know when to plant them, and so that you have something in the garden throughout the spring and summer. Ready? Let’s get started.

Why Did I Choose These Three Easy-to-Grow Vegetables?

I chose these three vegetables because they are among the easiest to grow. I’ve grown them successfully in New York and Virginia. I’ve also grown them in poor garden soil, lush loamy garden soil, pots, and containers. They germinate quickly and easily from seeds, and the seeds aren’t expensive. As long as they get plenty of sunshine and water, even the worst “black thumb” gardener should be able to grow them.

Gardening Basics

But first things first, if you are a beginner. You need to know a few gardening basics. Don’t worry. I’ll keep it simple.

Where Should You Plant a Vegetable Garden?

Before we talk about these easy-to-grow vegetables, make sure you have two things: full sunlight and good soil.

Light Needed for Vegetable Gardens

Vegetable gardens need full sunlight. Full sunlight is defined as six or more hours per day of bright, direct sunshine. Direct sunshine is when the sunlight actually touches the ground without any interference from other buildings, garages, sheds, big trees, fences and things like that. Even if the area you want to use for your garden seems to get direct sunlight in the wintertime, consider spring and summer —the prime growing months. Will a big maple, oak, or another deciduous tree grow leaves that will eventually shade the area? If so, look for another spot to plant your garden.

What to Do If You Don’t Have Full Sunlight

Some vegetables tolerate partial shade. Lettuce and green beans, for example, can get by with only a few hours of light per day. If you have only dense shade in your yard, consider growing vegetables in containers or pots and placing them in a sunny area. That’s what I did when I lived in a small apartment in New York. I grew many vegetables and even cantaloupe in large planters on my desk.

Soil for Vegetable Gardens

Good soil is the key to healthy plants, including healthy vegetables. If you are starting your vegetable garden in the ground in your backyard, find a local place to have your soil tested. Garden centers or your local Cooperative Extension office (in the United States) will test your soil for a small fee. They will then share the results, help you understand them, and guide you through what to add to your soil (amendments) to help your vegetable plants thrive.

It is always safe to add compost to a vegetable garden bed before planting. If you are new to gardening, you will need to dig up some of the ground (“tilling the soil”) to prepare it for vegetable seeds. If you have a lawn, you will need to cut away a patch of lawn, or sod, then dig up the soil a bit to prepare it for seeds. Add the compost to the soil and mix it together before planting your seeds.

Cool Weather, Easy to Grow Vegetables

The following easy-to-grow vegetables can all be started from seeds. Purchase seeds in the late winter for the best selection. Read the back of the seed package for instructions on how to plant them and when to plant them in your area. Follow the instructions carefully.

Lettuce

Lettuce is one of the easiest vegetables to grow. You can grow many tasty varieties of lettuce: Romaine, red leaf, green leaf, and even fancy varieties like the kind you get in a restaurant.

Lettuce is best planted directly into the soil in the springtime. It needs cool temperatures but cannot stand a hard frost. Check the back of the seed package for the approximate planting time for your area.

Place the seeds about an inch apart, and sprinkle just a little soil on top. Water the seeds after planting, and water them every day until they sprout (germinate). Continue watering throughout the growing season.

Harvest lettuce when the plant has several leaves. You can snip off lettuce leaves a little at a time. It gives the plant time to grow back the leaves so you can extend the harvest.

When the lettuce sends up a stalk from its center, it will turn bitter. This is called bolting, and it means the plant is creating seeds. At that time, you can pull up the entire plant and add it to your compost pile.

How to Grow and Care for Radishes

Radishes are one of the easiest and fastest vegetables to grow, making them perfect for beginner gardeners. They thrive in cool weather, so plant them in early spring or fall when temperatures range between 50–70°F (10–21°C). Choose a sunny spot with well-drained, loose soil. Radishes need room to expand underground. Before planting, work compost into the soil to improve fertility and texture.

Sow radish seeds directly into the garden about ½ inch deep and 1 inch apart. Rows should be spaced 12 inches apart. To ensure a continuous harvest and avoid a glut, stagger your plantings: sow a small batch of seeds every 7–10 days. This succession planting method keeps your kitchen stocked with fresh, crisp radishes for weeks.

Radishes mature quickly. Most varieties are ready to harvest in just 3–4 weeks. Water consistently to keep the soil moist but not soggy, and thin seedlings early to prevent overcrowding. Harvest radishes when they’re still small and tender for the best flavor; oversized roots can become woody and bitter.

With a bit of effort and a bit of timing, you’ll enjoy a steady supply of crunchy, peppery radishes straight from your garden

Kale, Another Easy Beginner Vegetable

Kale is a leafy green vegetable that does well in cooler weather and can be grown in a garden or in pots. It is packed with nutrients and can be used in salads, soups, or smoothies.

Start by picking a sunny spot with soil that drains well. You can mix in compost or natural fertilizer to help the plants grow strong. If you are planting seeds, place them about half an inch deep and a few inches apart. Once the plants start growing, you can thin them out so each one has enough space, about a foot and a half between each plant.

Kale likes cooler temperatures, so it is best to plant it in early spring or late summer. If you are starting seeds indoors, do it about six weeks before the last frost in spring. You can move them outside a couple of weeks before the frost ends. For a fall crop, plant seeds in midsummer and move them outside in late summer.

Water your kale regularly, about one to two inches each week. Try to water the soil and not the leaves to keep the plants healthy. Watch out for bugs like aphids or cabbage worms. You can pick the outer leaves once they are big enough, and the plant will keep growing new ones. With a little care, you will have fresh kale to enjoy for months.

Warm Weather, Easy to Grow Vegetables

Easy-to-grow vegetables for warm or hot weather include green beans, cucumbers, summer squash, and zucchini. All can be grown from seeds sown directly into the garden soil. Like radishes, zucchini, and squash grow very quickly, and are great for gardening with children since they seem to grow overnight! It won’t take long before you’ll have plenty of fresh vegetables.

The Very Easiest Warm Weather Vegetables to Grow (Beginner Friendly!)

Vegetable	Garden Ideas
Beans (Green)	Bush type easier to grow. Start from seeds. Warm weather.
Cucumbers	Bush type takes up less space. Start from seeds. Warm weather.
Summer Squash	Needs room to grow. Fast-growing. Prolific. Start from seeds. Warm or hot weather.
Zucchini	All types are easy to grow. Start from seeds. Cool weather.

Tips for Growing Great Vegetables

In addition to ensuring vegetables receive plenty of bright sunlight and the right soil conditions, here are a few more tips for growing great vegetables.

• Water: Make sure that vegetables are well-watered. Using soaker hoses is a smart and economical way to water. A soaker hose, or drip irrigation hose, is a flexible hose with tiny holes along its length. Instead of water squirting out the end like a typical garden hose, it drips out of the holes. You lay it on the ground around the base of the plants and let the water drip to the plants’ roots. You use less water, and it is better for plants. It keeps their leaves dry while still watering them thoroughly.
• Fertilizer: Fertilizer may or may not be necessary. You can add compost before planting vegetables to give them a boost. I generally don’t add fertilizer. I try to add as much compost or mushroom soil as I can in the spring, and this seems to be plenty of nutrients for my raised bed vegetable garden.
• Plant Labels: Use plant markers or labels to identify where you’ve planted your seeds. Otherwise, you may forget where they are and dig them up by accident.
• Weeds: Weeds aren’t just ugly. They also take water and food away from the plants you want to grow, such as your vegetables. Weed by hand whenever possible by pulling out weed plants. Don’t compost weeds; you may accidentally add weed seeds to the compost pile.

Don’t be afraid to get your hands dirty and start your very first vegetable garden. There’s something enormously satisfying about planting seeds on a cool spring day and harvesting a lunchtime salad a few weeks later. With sunshine, soil, water, and seeds, your garden will grow in no time.

Frequently Asked Questions