With the climate forever changing, and prices of daily essentials rising by the day, it’s no wonder many people are asking the question, what vegetables can you grow in pots.
All across the globe, people of all ages are considering becoming more sustainable, especially when it comes to growing their own vegetables. However we know that a lot of people don’t have an abundance of space to grow all the vegetables they need. So we put together this article to show you exactly what vegetables you can grow in pots, at home.
Why do you think that you’re unable to grow vegetables in your small garden?
Maybe you don’t even have a garden and live in an apartment?
Well we’re here to tell you that you absolutely can, and vegetables will grow amazingly in pots, both inside and outside your home. Whilst growing your own vegetables in pots will save you a lot of money over time, it’s actually very fun to do too.
But first of all, we need to know exactly what vegetables can you grow in pots.
10 of THE BEST Vegetables To Grow In Pots
These vegetables below are the 10 best and most common vegetables that you can grow in pots. We have picked these vegetables because they have the most use in everyday living. We will name a few , more exotic, vegetables a bit later on which you can also grow in pots too.
Beans
There are many different beans which you can grow in pots that are easy to maintain, such as runner beans, dwarf french beans and broad beans, just to name a few.
All of these bean varieties will grow in pots with a minimum depth of 12 inches.
All beans can be divided up into two groups. These being “Climbing Beans” and “Bush Beans” and both of these growing types can be beneficial to any garden space. The reason why is quite self-explanatory: climbing beans grow tall vertically using poles, whilst bush beans grow low to the ground in bushes.
If you are planning to have a few different vegetables growing in pots, then it may be best to stick to climbing beans, as these will grow above the other vegetables and have more room on ground level for other vegetables.
Runner Beans – Climbing
Runner beans are the biggest of the three. They can grow to a size of 2 meters and will require a pole to grow to this size. Runner beans also need a lot of water, so a much bigger pot will be required to house this vegetable.
Dwarf French Beans – Bushy
Dwarf french beans will grow low to the ground and do not need a pole to grow. They will grow to around 45cm tall and will flop over as the beans start to grow gaining more weight. This means that dwarf french beans can be grown in very small places and dont need a huge amount of room above the pot to grow fully.
Broad Beans – Climbing and Bushy
Broad beans are essentially a mixture of both. They don’t use a pole to climb, however they do grow pretty tall without any help. The plant itself is a bush which is very sturdy, with the capability to grow up to 5ft tall, which produces long bean pods up to 6 inches long.
Beetroot
Beetroots are a great little vegetable to grow in pots. Not just because they don’t need a lot of space, but because they look great too when the leaves bloom.
For beetroots to grow in a pot you will need a pot size of 8×8 inches in diameter and depth. (or 20cm x 20 cm)
The beetroot plant can grow up to 50 cm in height if left unharvested and will make the space it’s growing look full with bright green leaves, and a purple stem.
If you want to harvest the greens, then you should do so when they are sized between 2-5 inches. Just remember to leave some foliage on so the roots will continue to grow healthy.
Pepper Varieties
There are many different peppers that can be grown in pots or containers. But the most common which you will use has to be the Bell Pepper.
Bell Peppers
Bell peppers are the most common pepper which most people buy from the supermarket to put in their salads. These peppers need a pot size of 12×12 inches, which may seem a little overkill at the beginning, but their roots grow very fast beneath the surface and need a lot of space to grow to their full potential.
The bell pepper plant will grow up to 3 feet in a pot of this size stated above. They can grow much bigger, but this will simply take up too much space and produce more peppers than you’re probably going to eat.
Rainbow Peppers
Now if you want something spectacular for your garden or windowsill then the rainbow pepper is the one you need. These peppers grow in beautiful colors, starting from Purple and turning to Yellow, Orange and Red, with all these colors being visible at once.
The origin of the rainbow pepper is located in Bolivia. They have been growing these peppers in Central South America for centuries and these plants really do brighten up any space.
These are fairly hot peppers though, so not best paired with a salad. Unless you want to obviously.
Kale
Kales is easily grown in pots and doesn’t need much upkeep to do so either. Kale grows to be this amazing bushy plant, with big leaves that stand tall. Kale prefers to grow in cooler temperatures, compared to warmer temperatures, but will grow in both. The taste will be slightly different, with the warmer climate giving the Kale a more earthy taste. So a great little winter vegetable to grow at home.
The pot size you will need to grow Kale is 12×12 inches.
For Kale to grow to full size in a pot, it will take roughly 55-70 days. Once fully grown Kale will stand between 1-2 feet tall and can be harvested anywhere in between.
Lettuce Varieties
Lettuce is a great vegetable which can be grown in a pot. The vegetable lettuce, commonly only need very shallow plant pots to grow fully, however they do need more care and attention than other vegetables do.
Lettuce will grow in a pot size between 6×6 to 12×12 inches.
They need to be housed in a clay pot which can absorb any excess water, as a lettuce roots have to be able to dry.
Gem Lettuce
Gem lettuce will grow very well in the shallower plant pots, which only needs a maximum of 8 inches. This lettuce will only grow by itself in a pot of this size, but being relatively small, you can afford to have more than one pot if you wish.
For Gem lettuce to grow fully will take roughly 40 days.
Oakleaf Lettuce
For the best Oakleaf lettuce you will need a shallow but wide container. The Oakleaf lettuce needs a bit more room to grow and will require a pot which is 12×12 inches as minimum. If you can get a bigger pot, then you can house 1 or 2 more in the same pot. They just need to be planted 8 inches apart.
Oakleaf lettuce takes a little longer, roughly taking 45-55 days to grow in a pot.
Onions
Onions are another great, everyday vegetable which you can grow in a pot. There are many different types of onion too which you can grow, so you will never be short for options.
All of these onions below will need a pot with a minimum depth of 10 inches. The diameter of the pot really depends on how many you want to grow.
White/Red Onion
White and Red onions will grow perfectly in pots. All they need is to be planted 3 inches apart from the next, so the size of the pot should be based on this. These onions are the most common across the world, which are used for salads and additionally accompanying dishes.
These onions take 90-100 days to mature fully from a seed. Alternatively you can buys sets, which will roughly take 80 days until they are ready to harvest.
Spring Onion
Spring onions are the perfect vegetable to grow indoors, as long as you have a windowsill, because they need a full day of light. They will grow to be 10-14 inches tall and spread no more than 3 inches wide.
They will grow well at ambient house temperature and are usually ready to be harvested at 60 days.
Shallot Onion
Shallots are a much sweeter onion to the first two options. Shallot onions are usually used within sauces as the sweetness heightens its flavor.
This type of onion does take the longest to mature, and won’t be ready to harvest until 140 – 250 days, but this depends on its size.
Asparagus
Asparagus is another really good vegetable to grow in a pot. As long as all its requirements are met, then it will grow absolutely fine. This vegetable needs to be sheltered from the wind to be able to grow fully, but also needs a full day of sunlight.
The plant itself can grow up to 7 feet tall, but can be pruned back and still not affect the growth of the actual vegetable. When during its 8 week harvest, asparagus spears can be cut off every 2 days, as this is how quickly they grow.
The down side to this is that asparagus will take 2 years to mature from a crown up to this stage of harvest.
Spinach
Growing spinach in a pot could possibly be one of the healthiest vegetables to could harvest. Spinach contains high levels of Iron, as well as Vitamin A and C, Potassium, Folic Acid and Carotenoids (which keeps your eyes healthy).
Spinach can be grown in pots on a windowsill or in your garden, whichever suits you best.
The pot size you will need to grow spinach is 10 x 10 inches, and they grow to roughly 12 inches tall. So they don’t take up much space at all. Spinach will take around 40-50 days to mature, to which you can harvest.
The spinach plant will continue to produce harvestable leaves throughout most of the year, if kept inside as they prefer a warmer climate. If housed outside, then you should be okay to harvest from May – October.
Tomatoes
Tomatoes will grow pretty much anywhere, so they make the perfect vegetable to grow in pots. They can be placed inside or outside and will grow pretty evenly in both locations. There are two varieties that we would recommend for you, and these are beef tomatoes and cherry tomatoes. Yes, these are two of the most common tomatoes which you can buy or groe, however they are also the easiest.
Beef Tomatoes
It takes roughly 85 days for tomatoes to mature, ready to harvest. Beef tomato seeds should be planted roughly 100 days before the beginning of summer for the best possible results.
You will need a pot which is sized between 12 x 12 and 24 x 24 inches. Beef tomato roots need a lot of room to grow to produce the best tomatoes possible. If the pot is too small, then the likeliness is that your tomatoes won’t grow to the size they should.
Cherry Tomatoes
Cherry tomatoes are slightly quicker to mature. They take roughly 50-65 days to grow to the stage of harvest. Aesthetically, they are a brilliant variety of tomatoes to grow as they colour at different times. Which means you have an amazing array of Green, Yellow, Orange, Red and sometimes even Purple throughout the 50 days.
You will need a minimum pot size of 12 x 12 inches, but ideally you will need a 3 gallon pot. These will produce the best possible results for cherry tomatoes.
Potatoes
Potatoes actually grow surprisingly well in pots. The pot protects the potato from any surrounding pests. Commonly potatoes are a pests favorite meal, so keeping potatoes in pots is a preferred method for many people.
There are two main varieties of potato which we recommend to grow in pots, and these are Yukon Gold Potatoes and New Potatoes.
Yukon Gold Potatoes
Yukon Gold potatoes will grow amazingly in a pot, and for the size of pot used, you can plant a fair amount in them. These are medium sized potatoes, which can be used for boiling, mashing or sometimes even baking.
The pot size you will need to grow your own Yukon Gold potatoes is 16 x 16 inches. In a pot this sixe you will be able to plant 6-8 potatoes.
Yukon Gold potatoes will take between 80-95 days to fully mature, and should be ready to harvest any time after this.
New Potatoes
Growing new potatoes in pots is a very easy process for two reasons. One, they need very little maintenance to grow healthy, and 2, they will flower when they are ready to be harvest. So you don’t even need to check the calendar dates.
New potatoes will mature in 60-90 days, however whenever they flower, they’re ready to harvest.
The minimum pot size you will need to grow new potatoes is 14 x 14 inches. Ideally we would recommend a pot sized 20 x 20 inches, but this isn’t necessary if you don’t have the space.
What Vegetables Can Grow Together In Pots?
Growing vegetables in pots is becoming the new trend due to higher prices for essential products. But we know what you’re thinking. You’re thinking that your garden or window sills will become full of pots, with all the different vegetables you want to grow.
Well this isn’t exactly true.
Did you know that you can grow a number of vegetables together in the same pot?
No? Well now you do.
In fact there are many different vegetables that can be grown side by side, in the same pot, to save some space where possible. We call this possess “Companioning”, and companioning is proven to help prevent the spread of pests throughout your vegetables.
So What Vegetables Can Grow Together in Pots?
As a rule of thumb, for the best possible growth of your vegetables, you will need to pair root vegetables with plant vegetables. This means that with one plant pot you can grow vegetables that grow beneath the soil, and above the soil.
The Best Vegetable Pairs to Grow Together in Pots
Tomato > Onions, Carrots, Parsnips, Cucumber
Onions > Carrots, Beetroots, Peppers, Lettuce, Kale, Beans
Carrots > Beans, Tomatoes, Peppers
Beetroot > Kale, Lettuce, Beans, Broccoli, Onions
Lettuce > Carrots, Onions, Parsnips, Potatoes
Kale > Potatoes, Peas, Cucumber, Carrots, Onions
Beans > Cucumbers, Radishes, Parsnips, Carrots
Asparagus > Tomatoes, Beans
Vegetable and Herb Combinations
Commonly all of these vegetables above can be grown amongst a huge range of herbs. Herbs are one of the best natural pest deterrents, because the smell and taste of them is simply too overpowering for many small insects.
If you’re planning on growing your own vegetables in pots, make sure you add in some herbs to each pot. The best herbs you can used are;
Garlic
Oregano
Thyme
Chives
Rosemary
Benefits of Growing Vegetables Together in Pots?
There are many benefits of growing vegetables together in pots, especially for beginners.
Not all people understand the benefits of growing vegetables in pots, with many believing that natural soil is better for vegetable products. But this isn’t always true.
To grow vegetables in your garden you need a fair big patch of soil, to be able to grow all the products you need. Not only that, you will always find a new product which you want to try and grow in future, and if you’ve used up all your space, then you’ll have to wait another year before you can even plant it.
What Are The Benefits of Growing Vegetables Together in Pots?
Easy for beginners
Growing vegetables in pots is an easy method for beginners, as the maintenance needed is fairly low. You won’t have to worry about creating a suitable patch of soil in your garden, nor will you have to worry as much about crops that fail to grow.
When a vegetable doesn’t grow, you can simply throw the seeds and soil out and start again. Whereas if you have a vegetable patch, then you will have to do all the pH level testing which takes a lot of time if you don’t know what you’re doing.
Easy to control disease
Disease in vegetables is common. However disease spreading is very hard to detain and will spread rapidly through your vegetables if you can not find a solution. Growing vegetables in pots eradicates the possibility of disease spreading to your other vegetables.
Again, you can simply throw out the contents of the pot and start again. Easy.
Can easily be relocated
Each vegetable needs a certain amount of sunlight, and the easiest way to maintain the correct amount is to be able to relocate them easily. If you plant a vegetable in the wrong location, which does not get the correct amount of sun, then you need to be able to relocate them.
Something you can’t do if they are planted into the ground.
Easily collect seeds for future
Vegetable plants will drop seeds in their surrounding area. When the vegetables are planted in close proximity to each other, it can be hard to separate the dropped seeds correctly.
This is eliminated when you grow vegetables in pots, as the only seeds that are dropped into the pot should be those of the vegetable you planted.
Protects your vegetables
Growing vegetables in pots gives the best protection against pests. Pests are usually slow moving around crops, and giving them another obstacle to climb will reduce the amount of vegetables they can get to by the time you realize.
Its less messy
Generally, growing vegetables in pots is much less messy than having a vegetable patch that you have to look after.
You can easily pour the soil into the pots, without having to stamp it down (like you would on a vegetable patch). You can easily sweep up any excess which has been spilt, without the possibility of walking all the soil through the house.
Aesthetically they look great
Growing your vegetables in pots gives you the option to buy a fantastic looking pot. You can buy a pot which fits into its surroundings, without looking out of place. Aesthetically you can use the pots as features around your home and garden, without the space looking overcrowded.
Can easily label them
Being able to easily label your vegetables is something that you wouldn’t necessarily think of being a benefit. However from our own experience, as a beginner, you will no doubt forget which vegetable you have planted in each pot.
Fast Growing Vegetables in Pots?
Growing vegetables can be very rewarding, but we know what you’re all thinking?
The process seems very long and daunting.
Well it doesn’t have to be, You just have to do the research and find out some of the fastest growing vegetables which you can grow in pots.
Luckily, we have done all of this for you. So what are the fastest growing vegetables in pots?
Lettuce and Salad Leaves
One of the fastest and most cost effective vegetables to grow in pots are lettuce and salad leaves. The reason for this is that once the first harvest has been completed, the plant will continue to grow from the same seed you planted.
Many lettuce and salad leaves will regrow, and usually only take up to 21 days to do so, before you can harvest them again.
This is great news, seeing as lettuce and salad leaves are one of the most frequently bought vegetables at the supermarket. Growing your own lettuce in a pot could save you on average $25 per year.
Mushrooms
From time to time you have probably bought mushrooms and then soon after realized that they have begun to sweat. This is because once pickled, mushrooms don’t usually last that long.
However mushrooms can take as little time as 2 days to grow, and as many as 7 days. This means that by the time you head out to do your weekly shop, your next batch of mushrooms will likely be ready to harvest.
The best thing about mushrooms is that they grow all year round. As long as the soil remains damp and doesn’t dry out, then they should be good to harvest every single week. This could save you on average $65 a year off your food expenses.
Tomatoes
Some varieties of tomatoes can take as little as 40 days to mature. This may sound like a lot, but they are seasonal vegetables, so they can naturally only be grown in spring, and eaten in summer.
This means that you can start to grow your tomatoes only 5 weeks before the summer begins and you’ll have enough tomatoes to last all summer long. This could save you up to $70 in tomatoes across the summer months.
Radishes
Rapishes will grow quickly even when they’re not in the sun all day. In fact, radishes don’t enjoy being in the sun all day, and actually prefer only to be in direct sunlight as dusk and dawn.
Radishes take 30 days to mature, so within 1 month, you will be able to harvest and eat these vegetables. These are a great little vegetable to grow on your windowsill and will benefit from the ambient house temperature. They don’t like too much heat, so place somewhere cool, which gets a lot of light in the morning and evenings.
This could save you roughly $30 a year in food expenses.
Mustard Greens
Mustard Greens are an easy vegetable to maintain throughout the year. They will grow and mature within 30 days of planting, and can be planted in small pots.
There are many different varieties of mustard greens which you can grow, which all have their distinct taste, so we would recommend trying a few out to see which ones you like best. This could save you $25 a year in food expenses.
Kale
You can buy Kale seedlings from any gardening store. Kale will grow from seedling within 20-30 days, and will continue to produce leaves at this rate if cut 2 inches from the bottom of the leaf.
Kale is a great addition to any vegetable medley and is high in Iron, and Vitamins A and C, which helps blood circulation throughout your body. This could save you roughly $20 over the summer.
Zucchini
Zucchini grow reasonably fast, usually within 35-50 days, to its fully mature stage. You will need a deep pot to grow your zucchini as they can grow up to 2 inches per day at their peak.
The perfect time to harvest zucchini is when they flower. This is the golden rule of the zucchini. When the flower is about 2-4 inches in size, then your zucchini will be ready to harvest.
This could save you on average $40 a year in food expenses.
As you can see, just from these 7 vegetables grown in pots you could save on average over $300 a year, if you harvest each vegetable the maximum amount of times in its harvest period.
How Long Does It Take To Grow Vegetables In Pots?
Every vegetable takes a different amount of time to grow in pots, and we have covered some of these in the paragraph above. So we have created a chart below which states how long each vegetable takes to grow in order from quickest to longest.
Up to 7 Day
Mushrooms
Up to 30 days
Lettuce, Mustard Greens, Radishes
Up to 40 Days
Zucchini, Kale, Tomatoes
Up to 60 Days
Spinach, Squash, Broccoli, Cucumber
Up to 80 Days
Beans, Beetroots, Turnips, Carrots, Cauliflower
Up to 100 Days
Peppers, Garlic, Beef Tomatoes, Cabbage, Peas, Eggplant
Above 100 days
Onion, Potatoes, Pumpkins, Squash, Corn, Asparagus, Shallot Onions
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