Gardening in a small space has its advantages and joys. There are a lot of vegetables that can be grown in a small space, it is easy to maintain, and still, much harvest can be produced in just a small amount of space. I will share with you the list of the most popular vegetables that need the least space to grow and yield.
Vegetables that need the least space are:
- Carrot
- Green onions
- Beans
- Lettuce
- Spinach
- Radishes
- Beets
- Turnips
- Arugula
- Shallots
- Bush or patio tomatoes
- Space master cucumbers
- Cilantro
- Thyme
- Rosemary
- Basil
- Sage
- Oregano
- Dill
- Bok choy
- Kale
- Mustard
- Garlic
- Hot peppers, chili peppers
- Dwarf varieties of vegetables
- Patio size vegetables
- Microgreens
- Asian greens
- Swiss chard
It is surprising how much you can grow in a small area like a balcony, patio, or a small lot vegetable garden.
How to maximize small growing space
- To maximize a small growing space grow vegetables in clumps, or groups.
- Grow vegetables with a short growing season with the least number of days from seed to harvest so the growing space could be reused multiple times per growing season.
- Practice succession growing.
- Plant vegetables that can be harvested multiple times, not only ones.
- Plant high-yield vegetables that produce more than one fruit.
- Space vegetables with the minimum spacing required according to their packet instructions.
What vegetables are good for small spaces?
How to make the most of veggie garden space
Vegetables that need very little space
Which vegetables can clump together?
Vegetables that can be grown in clumps, groups or can be multi-sowed together, are mostly root vegetables and leafy greens including beets, green onions, lettuce, onions, spinach, radishes, turnips, arugula, shallots, cilantro, dill, basil, sage, mustard greens, and Swiss chard, kale, and leeks.
Not all vegetables require individual spacing. Some vegetables can be multi-sowed together to grow in clumps. Some vegetables when grouped together and can grow well and produce more harvest or can provide continuous harvest.
What is multi-sowing, or clump growing
By multi-sowing, or growing in clumps you can grow more vegetables in a smaller space which equals more harvest from the small space. Not only more food can be grown in a small space, but it will require less labor, less weeding, less watering, and less fertilizing. Multi-sowing eliminates thinning so you will not lose any seeds. By growing vegetables in groups transplanting is eliminated as well. Because the plants can be sowed in one spot and left there to grow their whole life cycle without transplanting or thinning. It also saves you soil and seed trays since multiple seeds can be sowed together in one cell. When the plants are sowed and grown together it is much easier to protect them from pests.
I have a whole article on multi-sowing, or clump growing in which I discuss its pros, what vegetables can be multi-sowed or grown in clumps, how to harvest vegetables from a clump, and much more. Visit What is multi-sowing, or clump growing?
What vegetables have a short growing season?
Vegetables with the short growing season are radishes, carrots, salad leaves, green beans, green onions, baby beets, turnips, kohlrabi, spinach, arugula, baby Bok choy, kale, and Swiss chard, mustard greens, kohlrabi, peas, Zucchini.
By growing vegetables that have a short growing season, you will be able to use your growing space multiple times. Not only so, but you will also be able to harvest more. Once you harvest a vegetable, you can eat it, preserve it and then fill the empty growing space with a new vegetable plant! You are maximizing your growing space while filling your plates and pantry to provide for yourself and your family.
What vegetable can be harvested in one month?
Short-season vegetables are vegetables that take the least number of days from seed to harvest. For example, carrots can take 50-80 days from seed to harvest. By choosing the shortest-season vegetables you can increase the amount of harvest.
Let us say that your whole growing season lasts 6 months which is 182 days, and you choose to grow carrots that mature in 50 days, then you can grow the same carrot 3.6 times in just one season! That is 4 carrot harvests. Or you can grow carrots only 2 times and then grow some other vegetables for the rest of the growing season.
A small space has a lot of potential, one just needs to be smart about how to use it.
What is growing in succession?
Growing in succession means planting seeds in intervals of 1 to 3 weeks to maintain a consistent supply of harvestable produce through the whole growing season. It also means filling up an empty space in the garden as soon as something is pulled out of it.
Sowing seeds every 7 days, every 2 or 3 weeks will allow you to have mature seedlings ready to be planted when something leaves the garden. For example, once you harvest a head of cauliflower, that plant is done. It will no longer produce another cauliflower. The whole plant can be pulled out of the growing space and now you have an empty growing space. If you have a mature seedling ready to be planted right away as the space is available you can soon harvest another crop. You did not lose any length of time within the growing season. The space will be maximized and the harvest will increase.
Some plants are harvested only once. They grow, mature, produce, and are harvested and that is it. They can be harvested and their growing cycle is over. The plant can be pulled out and composted. Where there was a growing plant, now there is an empty space, which is utilized right away with succession planting. The worst is to leave the growing space empty. This will diminish the quality of the soil and weeds will start to occupy it. It is much better to plant something right away to occupy the space and to have another harvest in just a couple of weeks.
Succession planting is especially crucial for small spaces because the number of vegetables grown in a small space is limited. By succession planting, one maximizes the growing space and uses the growing season to the fullest.
Vegetables that can be harvested multiple times
Vegetables that can be harvested multiple times are leafy greens including salad, kale, green onions, herbs like rosemary, thyme, dill, coriander, parsley, basil, spinach, arugula, sage, oregano, mustard, Asian greens and Swiss chard, turnip greens, beet greens, and leek’s tops.
Planting these vegetables only once but harvesting them multiple times is a great way to utilize a small growing space. Once these vegetables are well established, and mature, they can be very productive. By using the right harvesting method that will allow you to harvest these vegetables multiple times, you will skip the need to sow them again, and you will skip the waiting time for them to mature.
Harvest the green tops of the root vegetables while letting the root mature more and the green tops regrow. Harvest the outer leaves of leafy green vegetables and leave the middle leaves to regrow for another harvest time.
High-yielding crops
High-yielding vegetables are tomato, lettuce, spinach, herbs, beans, zucchini, cucumbers, carrots, parsnip, radish, garlic, and all the cut-and-come-again crops listed above as vegetables that can be harvested multiple times. Perennial fruits growing on trees, canes, and bushes, are one of the highest-yielding crops there is. Apple trees, plums, peaches, pears, blackberries, and raspberries, are among the highest yielding. Because they are perennials, they do not need to be grown from seed, or planted every year. Rather, they are planted once and they survive winter well if you choose the right variety for your hardiness zone, and yield year after year again and again. The more mature they are, the more they produce.
What do hardiness zones mean and how to determine yours
Most high-yielding fruits and vegetables to grow in pantry stocking garden
If you are not growing any fruit trees, canes, or bushes bearing fruit, I would like to strongly encourage you to do so. There are many dwarf varieties to choose from that can be grown in a post in small and limited spaces. Look for dwarf or patio cultivars to grow then in small spaces.
I listed root crops here as well because although one seed produces only one fruit, they require so little space to grow that a large amount of harvest can be gained from one small space. For example, in a 5-gallon bucket, up to 25 carrots can be grown and harvested one by one or all at once.
Maximize small growing space by keeping the smallest possible spacing required
Since not all vegetables like to be crowded, some need more space than others. Vegetables like tomatoes, peppers, cabbage, and cauliflower, do not like to be crowded or grown in clumps. They require their own spacing. If you grow vegetables that require spacing, then space them with the least amount of space possible according to the packaging. I also think, that since vegetables do not count how far they are from each other, I sometimes cut an inch or two from the required spacing and they will do just fine.
A required space is a space the vegetable needs to grow, mature and produce well. Spacing is not a fixed number but rather a range. By providing your vegetables with the smallest required spacing, you still provide enough space for them to grow while saving some space for something else to grow as well. Thus, your space is maximized.
If you are growing vegetables and fruit in a small space, please share with us what vegetables and fruit work for you best.
What vegetables are good for small spaces?
Vegetables that need very little space
How to make the most of veggie garden space
What is the easiest food crop to grow?
What vegetable can be harvested in one month?
Most high-yielding fruits and vegetables to grow in pantry stocking garden
