Hooray, spring is finally around the corner! And there’s no better way to celebrate than by planning a garden, even if your garden consists of a variety of planters on your balcony. The following plant varieties are perfect for early spring, when temps are still on the chilly side. Here are 10 seed selections to start indoors now:
#1) CHIVES
Chives are a cold-tolerant herb and a perfect addiiton to baked potatoes. The flavor they add is something between onion and garlic but fairly mild. You can often find chives growing wild in wet areas near ponds and streams. As an added bonus Chives have attractive purple flowers that are edible. Even better, chives are perennials and will come back on their own year after year.
#2) BROCCOLI
Broccoli is another cold-tolerant easy to grow vegetable. It’s known as a cuniferous vegetable and is packed with nutrients and phytochemicals. Kale, cabbage and brussel sprouts are other family-members of broccoli also in the cuniferous genera and all are known for growing well in chilly weather.
#3) DIANTHUS
Dianthus is a pink flower with a frilled edge reminiscent of carnations. It’s name means “flower of Zeus” in Greek and it will add a cheery element to your vegetable garden and makes a great border flower. Dianthus grow well in chilly spring weather and tend to return year after year.
#4) CABBAGE
Easy to grow and very cold-tolerant, cabbage plants well in early spring and early winter. It’s a handy addition to many recipes and cooks up well in the crock pot or in soups. It’s hardy and nutritious and hails from the brassica family, like its cousin Broccoli. You can find cabbage in several colors, including green, white or purple.
#5) VIOLAS AND/OR PANSIES
These flourish in chilly temps with cheerful blooms that can also be added to salads. Start indoors 10-12 weeks before the last frost, keeping them in darkness with consistent moisture until they germinate, and moving them to a sunny spot once they sprout. Violas are related to pansies, which also do well in cold weather. Violas and pansies can be planted in early spring and also in late fall in areas that don’t get hard freezes.
#6) ZUCCHINI
Start them early and get a jump on your summer harvest. Zucchini and other squash varieties produce strong, fast growing seedlings. Once the weather is reliably warm, plant your seedlings on a composted mound and watch them sprawl over a large area.
#7) SUNFLOWERS
Get them going early then transplant into pots or a garden space for early summer blooms. There are numerous varieties on sunflowers. The smaller varieties make a showy addition to cut-flower bouquets. The giant sunflower is a popular attraction for birds. Most sunflowers reseed themselves and come up on their own in late spring.
#8) SWEET PEAS
Sweet peas are fun to watch sprout. They are easy to plant and delicious both cooked and raw. Make sure to plant your seedlings about a foot apart with a trellis they can climb up.
#9) RADISHES
Radishes are one of the easiest crops to grow. In fact, you can often plant them directly into the ground if you live in an area that doesn’t freeze. Radishes do best in cool temps and can be harvested in a few weeks.
#10) BEETS
A tasty root crop that’s easily grown. Beets belong to the the Amaranth family, like spinach and swiss chard, and love cooler temperatures. Beets are nutrient-dense vegetables packed with antioxidants. They can be prepared in many ways like roasting, boiling, or eating raw. A single serving of cooked beets contains about 37 calories.
Whether you plant a full garden, flowers in pots, or somewhere in between there’s no better way to welcome the spring season than by watching new plants grow.