New gardeners (and experienced ones too) often become overwhelmed by the seed choices available. Check out our tips to help you get exactly what you want when you choose vegetable seeds for the organic garden!
Pick Seeds Based on What You Like to Eat
The seed rack can be seductive, so make a list of vegetables your family likes to eat. Radishes are a fast and easy crop for home gardens, but they’re a waste of space if you hate them.
Choose Small-Space Favorites
Good choices for small gardens are crops that
- Taste better when extremely fresh (tomatoes and peas)
- Grow quickly and can be harvested several times (lettuce and other salad greens)
- Cost a lot in the store compared to growing them (baby gourmet vegetables)
Avoid crops that tie up your garden space for a long time (onions and carrots, for example). If you have a small yard, don’t try to grow melons and pumpkins unless you can grow them up a trellis. They require a huge amount of space unless you buy small-fruiting versions that can climb.
Plant Both Cool-Weather and Warm-Weather Varieties
The garden year is divided into cool and warm seasons. To keep your garden going for a long period, you’ll want both cool- and warm-season plants.
Cool-season plants are planted in early spring and harvested by late spring, or planted in midsummer to harvest when the weather turns cooler. Warm-season crops are planted in late May in Indiana and are killed by frost.
Cool-Season Crops
- Root crops: beets, carrots, radish, turnips
- Greens: lettuce, spinach, salad mixes
- Potatoes
- Peas
- Cole crops: broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower, kale
Warm-Season Crops
- Melons and squash: cucumbers, zucchini and other summer squash, pumpkins and winter squash, melons and watermelons
- Greens: chard, New Zealand spinach
- Fruiting: tomatoes, peppers, eggplants
For more about when to plant vegetables in Indiana, check out this publication from Purdue University Cooperative Extension Service.
Pick Easy Direct-Sow Vegetable Seeds; Buy the Rest as Transplants
Some vegetables are planted as seeds and others as transplants. Vegetable seeds planted directly outside are the best choice for beginning gardeners. Buy transplants at a nursery for plants that need a head start inside.
Direct sown seeds are those planted directly in the ground.
- Cool-season: peas, lettuce, spinach, beets, carrots, potatoes (seed potatoes are tiny potatoes, not actual seed), onion sets (tiny onions)
- Warm-season: beans, pumpkins, summer squash, and cucumbers.
Transplants are available for plants that need a head start in order to grow to eating stage in the amount of time available in our growing season.
- Cool-season: broccoli, cabbage, and cauliflower
- Warm-season: tomatoes, peppers, eggplant, melons, and some squash.
Not sure where to put your vegetable garden? Still confused about what to plant? Our garden coach can help you plan your Indianapolis garden. Contact us to schedule garden coaching today.