Would you like to grow a vegetable garden but feel like it just takes way too long? Well, the amazing thing is, it doesn’t have to.
Instead, you can plant some faster-growing veggies and have some great fresh food options to choose from.
So if this sounds great to you, then you’ll want to stay tuned to this post.
16 Fast Growing Vegetables:
Here are the faster vegetable options that you can grow in your garden:
1. Arugula
Arugula is a wonderful little green that has a peppery flavor to it. We grew it at our old homestead. It was a delicious addition to our perennial garden.
If you’d like to have a peppery green to toss in your salad, then you should consider growing this flavorful vegetable. All you’ll need to do is plant it, give it about a month to produce mature leaves, and then cut them when you’re ready to enjoy.
Then they’ll continue to grow back each year for your enjoyment.
Arugula can be grown annually in nearly all zones and can be harvested after 30 days.
2. Spinach
Spinach was one of the first things I ever tried growing. I did so because of how fast it grew and how simple it was to grow.
Basically, you directly sow the seeds into good quality dirt. Then you’ll need to water and wait. Before you know it, in about 4-6 weeks, you’ll have fresh spinach.
Spinach can be a nice addition to any salad, or you could prepare the spinach fresh like in this recipe.
Spinach can be grown in Zones 3-9, and the leaves can already be harvested 6 weeks after planting.
3. Baby Carrots
Baby carrots taste delicious, are a great snack, are great to cook with, and don’t take as long as full-sized carrots because they don’t have to grow to be as large.
So if you enjoy carrots and want them quickly, then you’ll definitely want to pick the baby carrot variety. Plant them in the ground, or in a container garden for versatility.
Either way, be sure to directly sow the seeds in quality dirt. Then in about 30 days, you’ll have your first harvest.
Baby carrots can be grown in zones 4-10 and can be ready within a month from sowing.
4. Radishes
Radishes are probably one of the fastest plants you can grow. They are also super simple to grow as well.
If you’d like to try and grow your own vegetables, radishes are excellent fast-growing vegetables to start with. You’ll directly sow these seeds in quality soil.
Radishes can be harvested in about 22-50 days and can be grown in zones 2-10.
5. Cucumbers
Cucumbers are a very versatile plant to grow. You can make lots of delicious recipes with them. You can start with eating them fresh.
Then they could be a great addition to a salad. When you are “cucumbered out”, you can start making pickles with the fresh cucumbers.
But be advised that cucumbers like to run so you’ll need to either place them on a trellis or give them plenty of space to grow.
Cucumbers can be grown in zones 4-11 and if you want to make pickles the baby cucumbers can be harvested as early as 50 days after planting.
6. Beets
Beets are one of those vegetables that you either like or you don’t. But even if you don’t like the actual beet itself, you may enjoy the greens that come from the plant.
So either way, it is a great vegetable to grow if you’d like to have a harvest in a hurry. It is good to grow in the spring or when we are heading into fall because they can withstand a little heat, but don’t like the super-hot temperatures we often experience during summer.
Beets can be harvested in around 50 days, however, the greens can be harvested from 30 days. They grow well in zones 2-10.
7. Bush Beans
Bush beans are my favorite kind of bean. They grow beautifully in the garden, they are easier to prepare when canning green beans, and they also produce a quicker harvest.
So if you love tender green beans, then consider planting a bush bean variety. All you’ll need to do is directly sow the seeds into quality dirt.
Then over time, with water and sunlight, they will produce a beautiful green bean bush.
Bush beans will be ready in around 40-65 days and grow well in zones 3-10.
8. Bok Choy
Bok Choy is a fun plant. It looks fun, and it is even fun to say its name.
But it is also a great plant to grow because it can produce a mature harvest in around 30 days. If that isn’t a super-fast plant, I’m not sure what is.
If you are looking for something different to grow that will produce a fast harvest, then you should definitely consider Bok Choy.
Bok Choy grows well in zones 4-7 and individual leaves can be harvested after 21 days, or the whole head 45-60 days after planting.
9. Lettuce
Lettuce is such a versatile plant. There are so many different varieties to choose from that you can have a different flavor and crunch with each one.
But the great thing about lettuce is that it is hearty so it can grow in colder temperatures, and it also doesn’t take very long to produce a mature harvest.
If you want something healthy, green, and fast, then you should definitely consider planting lettuce.
Depending on the Lettuce variety, harvest can be about 30-60 days after planting, ideally in zones 4-9.
10. Summer Squash – Zucchini
Summer squash is probably one of my favorite vegetables to enjoy during the warmer months. It tastes delicious, is easy to grow, and produces quickly too.
So if you need to learn how to grow your own squash, here is a great resource to help you along the way.
But a quick overview is basically, you directly sow the seeds in quality soil, water them, and wait for them to grow and produce.
However, you’ll want to be sure to harvest your squash or zucchini when they are young for better flavor.
Zucchini, a Summer Squash variety, grows best in zones 3-10 and can be harvested almost daily from day 35 onwards as they grow so quickly.
11. Okra
Okra is another favorite vegetable of mine. It only takes about 50 days to produce a mature harvest.
Then you are clear to pick it and fry it up into a delicious side dish that many enjoy.
But you can also prepare okra in other ways as well. Go ahead and enjoy this fast-growing vegetable. You’ll be glad you tried it!
Okra can be planted in zones 3-9 and the Cajun Delight variety matures in 50-55 days after planting.
12. Kale/ Greens
I am a huge fan of greens and kale, but it has not always been that way. In fact, growing up, I wouldn’t touch them with a ten-foot pole.
But I’ve learned it is all in the preparation. I think I also love them even more now because I try to grow most of my family’s food.
And who doesn’t love a vegetable that is fast to produce? You can pick baby greens from kale or mustard greens in only 25 days.
Then you can have your mature leaves in about 50-65 days.
Kale does well in cold and can be grown in zones 8-10 all year round, but can also be planted in zone 7.
13. Snow Peas
Peas have always been interesting to grow to me. In my experience, you have to plant a lot of them to get a decent harvest.
Now, for me when I say decent, I mean enough to eat and preserve.
But if you just like to plant something to eat on it, then this could still be a good option for you. Snow peas take around 10 days to complete the germination process.
Snow peas can be harvested at around 60 days. They do well in zones 3-11.
14. Broccoli
I love broccoli. As a kid, it fascinated me because it looked like tiny trees. As an adult, I love it because I can put cheese on it, butter on it, or seasonings and enjoy it again and again.
But as someone that tries to produce most of their own food, I love broccoli because it likes colder weather. It is refreshing to be able to grow something green when the temperatures are still nippy outside.
So if you love broccoli too, then know that you can grow it and have it ready for harvest in around 60 days. That is how long it takes for it to make mature heads.
However, you could enjoy smaller heads of broccoli even sooner than that. It is all about your preference.
Grown in zones 3-10, Broccoli can be harvested after day 58, depending on the variety.
15. Green Onions
Green onions are another really versatile plant. You plant onions as bulbs. The bulbs take around 6 months to produce full-size onions.
But you can get green onion stalks at around 3-4 weeks. They taste delicious as a garnish for soups or to be added to stir-fry as well.
So if you want something green, fresh, and packed with onion flavor, then know that you can have all of that in less than a month.
Green onions grow in zones 3-9 and can be ready in 20-30 days from planting.
16. Turnips
Last but not least, Turnips are another vegetable that is amazing because you get two products in one plant. Turnips produce a bulb that has a very unique flavor.
In my experience, you either love them or you don’t. My mother-in-law absolutely loved them. She’d eat them every meal if she could.
Whereas my husband and children won’t go anywhere near them.
So you’ll need to try them for yourself to see which category you’ll fall into.
But whether you like the actual turnips or not, they produce some amazing greens. I love turnip greens. You can boil them, pour off the first boil, then boil them again. This takes away some of their bitterness.
Then you cook them with some bacon, onions, crushed red pepper, salt, and pepper. You’ll have one amazing side dish.
So if this sounds good, then know that you can have turnip greens in 40 days and turnip roots in around 60 days.
Turnip varieties such as the Market Express can be ready in as little as 30 days, and Turnips do well in zones 3-9.
Now you have 16 different fast-growing vegetables to start your garden with. They can be grown at different times of the year which means you can have a fast harvest almost year-round.
So hopefully, this will encourage you to produce some of your own food now that you know it doesn’t have to take an eternity to be able to harvest your vegetables.
