The 3 Best Plants for Your First Container Garden

When I started container gardening in college, I started with what everyone starts with: tomatoes and bell peppers. If you are starting your very first container garden, for the love of mother nature, do not start with those! I’m not saying don’t add them to your first garden, but I am saying add in some other plants too.

The reason I say don’t start with tomatoes and bell peppers is the following:

• They both have a long growing season and you won’t see the fruits of your labor until months down the line.
• You have to wait to plant them outside because they are warm weather plants.
• They need larger containers than you’re prepared for. I tried my first tomatoes and peppers in a “normal” pot and struggled for 5 years until my aunt told me I needed a 5 gallon pot. It made all the difference.

What you should start with instead:

My top three favorite plants to plant in the spring are: radishes, beets and sugar snap peas.

They may seem boring and small, but they’re actually amazing and make the perfect starter plants. Here’s why:

1. You can easily start them from seed!
   These three plants can (and should) be started from seed in their permanent home. That means no fussing with starting seeds indoors, up-potting or transplanting seedlings.
2. You can plant them before your last frost!
   Don’t lose your new year garden motivation because of cold weather. These plants can all be planted before your last frost and will give you that little hit of garden dopamine you need to keep going and grow your garden. Note: the peas will die in the summer heat so they need to be planted in the spring.
3. They are quick to mature!
   All three of these plants mature quickly. I’ve harvested radishes in as little as a month after sowing the seeds and I consistently start harvesting sugar snap peas about 2 months after sowing the seeds.
4. They don’t need a lot of space!
   All three of these plants can be grown in small pots on a balcony or patio. I actually started mine on a communal front stoop. Note: the peas do need a trellis for best results.

These veggies are so easy and mature so quickly there is absolutely no reason NOT to plant them. Bonus points: you can use the leaves of radishes and beets in salads, and more bonus points: radishes and sugar snap peas make great snacks while you’re working on garden chores like weeding or just staring obsessively at your plants.

Set yourself up for success this year and give yourself little wins throughout the season. I wish you a little bit of chaos and a whole lot of dopamine!