If you haven’t started a survival garden yet, it’s not too late. Find out how easy and affordable it can be. U.S. President Biden stated that food shortages are going to be real, so we need to grow our own food. Let’s talk about the fastest and easiest vegetables to grow at home, even in small spaces.
If you start today, you can harvest sprouts in less than a week and garden produce as soon as 3 weeks! Even if your garden isn’t ready, you can plant some seeds in a few containers to get you started.
The fastest and easiest vegetables to grow
You don’t need loads of experience and supplies to start growing your own food. Even seasoned gardeners have a list of favorite fast and easy veggies because they’re proven to be reliable and trustworthy.
If you’re inexperienced, busy, or simply want to get an immediate start, this list provides you with a well-rounded variety of veggies to get in the ground.
You’ll see from the list below that you can have veggies on the table in a month or two from planting.
In the meantime, hopefully you stocked some sprouting seeds. Grow a few jars of sprouts on the kitchen counter while waiting for your harvest to come in, and you’ll always have fresh veg to maintain your health.
Terms to know
- Direct sow — this is when you plant seeds directly into the soil in the garden.
- Seed starts — planting seeds in small containers indoors so they start growing before planting season begins. The partially grown plants are then transplanted outdoors after the last average frost date.
- Rotation planting — this is when you sow some seeds at the appropriate time. Then you sow more seeds a couple weeks later. Repeat during the growing season. This ensures that you have a constant crop maturing throughout the season.
- Bolt — when a plant sends up a flower stalk before the plant is fully mature or before the gardener is ready for the plant to be done producing. Usually, heat or drought will induce bolting. When the plant bolts, flowers appear, and then seeds, which can be collected and saved to plant later.
Container gardening
You can grow many vegetables in containers, as well as directly in garden soil. This is convenient when you don’t have the space for an in-ground garden, if you rent, or if you need to bring plants indoors due to frost.
Use buckets, plastic tubs, large fabric bags, and any other container you can find — use your artistic imagination! Make sure to drill holes in the bottom to ensure good drainage.
A layer of gravel on the bottom of containers also helps with drainage.
Plant varieties
Quick research of any vegetable, such as the tomato, will reveal a wide range of days-to-harvest. For instance, some early season tomatoes can be harvested in as little as 50 days, while late season varieties need 80 days or more.
When you think about it, the longer a plant is in the ground, the more exposure it has to risks like insect attacks, diseases, hail and storm damage, or frost. Nothing is more crushing than to have a big crop of almost-ripe tomatoes destroyed by a late season hailstorm.
To reduce risk, I’m inclined to select early season varieties with the shortest possible days to harvest. As a beginner, this might be a good strategy until you get a few growing seasons under your belt. As a seasoned gardener, you might want the insurance of fewer days in the ground.
The vegetable plants
The following plants are generally accepted as the easiest and fastest vegetables to grow. As you read through the list, think about a few that you want to plant.
Choose a variety of foods to give you a variety of nutrients. Many of these vegetables come in a selection of colors, which adds to their interest, flavor and phytonutrient profile.
Remember to choose non-hybrid seeds as much as possible, so you can save seeds to plant next year.
Arugula (Rocket) — harvest in 21 to 30 days
Direct sow in full sun to partial shade. Its shallow root system is great for container gardening.
Hot weather causes it to bolt; it definitely prefers cooler weather. Rotation plant the seeds starting in the fall, throughout the winter, and into the spring before heat sets in. If the ground is frozen in winter and you can’t plant seeds, then you can use a cold frame or greenhouse. This gives you fresh vegetables all winter long.
Harvest baby arugula when the leaves are a few inches long. Cut the stems at soil level. Baby arugula is mild and tender, and great in salads.
Older, larger leaves can be briefly stir-fried if you find them too bitter to eat raw.
Bok choy (also pak choi) — harvest in 21 to 60 days
Direct sow or transplant seed starts in partial shade. It prefers cool weather, so plant in early spring and early fall. Keep watered, or it will bolt if it dries out.
Although it can be allowed to mature and harvested after 60 days, it can be harvested as baby bok choy at 21 days. Carefully cut off the outer leaves and allow the inner leaves to continue growing.
This gives you a more continual harvest than you’d have if you were to cut the whole plant off at the base.
Radishes — harvest in 22 days
Direct sow in full sun as soon as you can work the soil in early spring. Radishes prefer cool weather and are one of the first spring crops to put in.
As they grow, thin any plants that are growing too close together. Add thinnings to a salad. You can eat the greens as well as the root.
Interplant with slower growing vegetables because radishes are harvested early.
Consider heirloom varieties for their different colors and flavors. Some varieties have longer days to harvest, up to 50 days after planting.
Kale — harvest in 25 days
Direct sow in full sun or partial shade. Kale plants can grow pretty large, so any containers should be big.
Kale not only prefers cooler weather, it actually thrives in frosty temperatures. The flavor improves in the cold! It can be grown year-round in some climates.
Make sure it gets enough water. When it dries out, it turns bitter.
Harvest baby leaves 25 days after planting. Carefully cut off outer leaves at soil level and allow the inner leaves to continue to grow. Harvest mature leaves after 50 days. At this point, the plant will become pretty big, so make sure not to crowd the plants.
When it matures, it will eventually flower — the buds and flowers are also edible.
Swiss chard — harvest in 28 days
Direct sow in full sun to partial shade after danger of frost is past. Plant a second crop in early fall. It likes cool weather and will grow into the winter.
As the plants grow, thin them so they’re not crowded. Use the thinnings in salad or stir-fry.
Harvest baby leaves in 28 days. Mature leaves are ready in 50-60 days when they are no more than 9” tall or so. They’ll grow taller, but will lose some flavor.
Eat smaller leaves raw in salads. Slice larger leaves and stalks, and add to stir-fry, casseroles or soups.
Spinach — harvest in 28 days
Direct sow in full sun or partial shade in early spring and early fall. Prefers cool weather.
Harvest leaves at 28 days. Carefully cut outer leaves about an inch above soil level, allowing inner leaves to continue growing.
Add raw baby leaves to salads, or briefly stir-fry larger leaves in a little oil.
Mustard greens — harvest in 28 days
Direct sow in full sun or partial shade. They grow well in containers or in the garden.
They prefer cooler weather, and flavor improves after a light frost. Plant in spring and fall. If your climate is frost free, you can grow mustard greens all winter. Give a little shade in summer heat.
Keep it watered since drying out will cause it to turn bitter.
Harvest leaves in 28 days when they’re about 6” long or so. They’ll mature to 18” tall in 6 weeks. Carefully cut off outer leaves, allowing the inner leaves to continue growing.
Baby leaves are eaten raw in salads, while older greens are sliced and added to soups and casseroles. Their peppery flavor is a welcome addition to any meal.
Beets — harvest in 30 days
Direct sow or transplant seed starts. They don’t like intense heat, so plant in the spring and late summer.
They have to be thinned as they grow; eat the thinnings in salad or stir fry. Eat the greens as well as the root.
Harvest the greens about 30 days after planting. Only take half the leaves, because the root is nourished by the leaves while it’s still growing.
Baby beets are harvested about 40 days after planting. Mature beets can be harvested 2 to 3 weeks later.
Lettuce — harvest in 30 days
Direct sow or transplant seed starts in early spring as soon as the ground can be worked, and again in late summer. Lettuce seeds won’t germinate if it’s too hot. Lettuces like cool weather and are quite cold hardy; they’ll turn bitter in hot temperatures. Provide some shade in summer.
There are many varieties to choose from — for example, romaine (cos) is firm and crunchy, while oak leaf lettuce is colorful and tender. A mixture of colors and textures is delicious.
Harvest 30 to 60 days after planting. Snip off outer leaves at soil level and allow the inner leaves to continue growing.
Turnips — harvest greens in 40 days, and the root in 60 days
Some turnip varieties have better-tasting greens than roots, others have better-tasting roots than greens. Read seed packets to decide which is best for your needs.
Direct sow in full sun in the spring and fall. Turnips prefer cool weather.
Harvest the greens at 40 days, making sure to only take some of the leaves. The leaves nourish the root, so while the root is still growing, it needs some leaves.
To eat the leaves, chop and boil them; pour off the water, add fresh water and boil again. Saute them with some bacon or ham, a chopped onion, salt, pepper and a few crushed red pepper flakes. Delicious!
Harvest the root around 60 days, when it’s 2 to 3” and still young and tender. Turnip root is tasty when prepared like mashed potatoes. Peel, boil, and mash with butter and salt. It’s also good cut into cubes, tossed with oil and salt, and oven roasted until tender and slightly browned on the edges.
Carrots — harvest in 40 to 50 days
Direct sow in very loose, stone-free soil in full sun. Mix some sand into the soil where you plan to plant carrots. They can be planted in deep containers if you plan to harvest them as small baby carrots. Plant in spring and fall. Carrots are frost tolerant.
As they grow, thin them out to give them plenty of room to grow. Eat the thinnings in a salad.
Harvest baby carrots in 30 to 50 days. Leave them in place an extra couple weeks for mature carrots. To keep from breaking the carrot as you’re pulling it out of the soil, use a small garden trowel to carefully loosen the soil first.
You can also eat the green tops. Chop the stems and saute them as a side dish. Chop the leaves and toss into a salad, or sprinkle them over foods as you might for parsley, or use them in pesto instead of basil. Like any other greens, carrot tops are loaded with nutrients.
Zucchini and Summer Squash — harvest in 45 days
Direct sow in full sun after danger of frost has passed. It’s best to wait until the sun has had a chance to warm the soil a bit.
These plants grow big and need a couple feet of space. Peer deeply under leaves and
beneath vines to find your prolific bounty.
Keep the soil moist but not soggy. They especially need moisture when the fruit is forming. Mulch will help keep the roots moist. To avoid powdery mildew, water plants at the ground level; don’t water the leaves.
Harvest baby zucchini and squash starting around 45 days after planting. Smaller fruits are more tender and taste better. But if you miss a few and find big zucchini or summer squash, it is still wonderfully edible until they get so big that they no longer taste as good.
Potatoes — harvest in 50 days
Potatoes are a very important survival food to add to the garden. Easy to grow and good keepers, they’re also calorie-dense and high in nutrients. Almost everyone likes potatoes, and you can survive on them for an extended time if that’s all you have.
Potatoes come in early, mid and late season varieties.
- Early season potatoes are harvested 50-70 days after planting.
- Mid season potatoes are harvested in 70-90 days.
- Late season potatoes, and also fingerling varieties, are harvested in 90-120 days.
Consider a strategy where you plant all three. That way, you can have an early harvest to feed you soon, and other varieties that will feed you later. Plant enough to last you all winter.
What about all the other vegetables?
Definitely go ahead and plant them! We all need a variety of vegetables in the diet, and more so during stressful times.
My list of the fastest and easiest vegetables to grow is to help you get a quick start and fast harvest. You need homegrown food to offset rising food prices and shortages. And you also need to plant those other longer-growing veggies to round out your dietary needs.
My hope is that you rethink the way you provide food for your family. Instead of relying on grocery stores, think about eating seasonally from your own backyard. Also consider storing extra food for a winter pantry. Think about how long it takes to grow it and how to stagger plantings so you have a constant supply.
If it feels overwhelming, no worries, just start with a few basics and let it expand as you’re able. It’s important to start, even if you start small.
Packets of seeds vs. seed starts and transplants
Yes, you can buy seed starts to transplant into your garden. But…a packet of seeds will provide you with dozens of plants for the same price as one transplant from the garden center.
Not only is it cost efficient to start plants from seeds, it’s also an exercise in self-sufficiency.
One packet of non-hybrid seeds can theoretically last the rest of your life because you can save seeds from year to year. A hybrid plant from the garden center will yield one season’s worth of vegetables.
A varied supply of non-hybrid seeds is a valuable asset in hard times. Savvy gardeners will seek you out as an important source of food. That kind of community is valuable in challenging times.
Getting started today
If you’re able to collect materials for a lasagna garden to plant your seeds today, that’s fantastic!
If it will take you a little time to gather what you need to build your garden, don’t worry. See if you can grab a few containers, even upcycled, and get ahold of a few seed packets. Plant them and point them toward the sun so you can start your very own food production!
This post talks about how to thrive in food shortages and rising food prices.
Let us know what you’re planting and planning on your food production journey 🙂
