We’re still experiencing some frosty mornings—and the soil is still too cool to plant many vegetables. But there are some veggies you can plant now. Cool season spring vegetables not only withstand the cool conditions, they actually relish them. Take a look at some of the vegetables you can (and should!) plant right away.
Lettuce does well in both sunny and partly shaded sites provided the soil has good drainage and is rich in humus and nitrogen. You can grow lettuce for baby greens or wait and harvest when they’ve grown into full-sized leaves or heads. If you’re aiming for baby greens, make sure you sow lettuce seeds closer together in rows. Cover the seeds with 1/4 to 1/2 inch of soil (or as mentioned on the seed packet).
While spinach grows best in sunny sites, it can produce a hearty harvest even in partly shaded spots. Look for a site with moist, but well-drained soil. Spinach is one of the most frost-resistant and fast-growing spring vegetables. You can harvest fresh baby spinach in just three weeks after planting. When growing for baby leaves, remember to plant spinach seeds close together in rows.
Arugula relishes sunny or partly shaded sites with organically rich, moist, well-drained soil. Arugula seeds germinate in about 7 days and you can harvest within 3-4 weeks of planting. Want a continuous harvest? Sow more seeds every 2 weeks, right until hot weather arrives.
Find a sunny or partly shaded spot that isn’t open to strong winds and you’re good to plant your pea seeds. While peas will thrive in most soil types (apart from heavy, impermeable clay), make sure to add plenty of organic material if your soil isn’t too fertile. Soak pea seeds in water overnight before you plant them in the garden.
The perfect potatoes come from sites in full sun, with loose, well-drained soil. They root aggressively and are capable of turning in big yields even in less than perfect soil and growing conditions. Eradicate all weeds from the site before you plant potatoes. Depending on the variety that you plant, your potatoes will be fully mature at anywhere from 60 to 130 days.
A site that receives full sun and has organically rich, well-drained soil is perfect for growing onions. Make sure you remove all weeds from the area and work in good quantities of compost before planting onions. Green onions will be ready for harvest within 30-40 days of planting and will fully mature in about 100 days.