10 Fast Mid-Summer Vegetables You Still Can Plant From Seed

When you think about planting for your vegetable garden – especially planting from seed – you might get a mental image of those early spring plantings just as your garden is getting started for the season. But just because we are now well into the warmer months of the year doesn’t mean you can’t still plant new crops from seed.

In fact, now is the perfect time to start planning and planting for your fall harvest. Here is a list of 10 vegetables that you can plant from seed in the middle of the summer, no matter where you live. These are great cool0weather vegetables that should be ready just in time for fall.

1. Beets – Brighten up your fall table with these sweet root vegetables. Beets come in a variety of colors ranging from deep purple-red to golden yellow. There is even a variety called Chioggia which has red and white stripes. Beets have been found to have unique phytonutrients called betalains which have been linked to anti-inflammatory and detoxification properties. Mid-to-late summer is the ideal time for planting beets and many varieties can still be harvested well beyond the last frost date.

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2. Broccoli – This healthy staple that your mother told you to eat is another good choice for a mid- summer planting. Extremely high in vitamins, you can get 245 percent of the daily recommended amount of vitamin K, and 135 percent of the daily recommended amount of vitamin C from this vegetable. While you’re likely to only ever to find the florets at your local supermarket, the stems and leaves of this brassica plant also are edible.

3. Carrots – High in vitamin A and beta carotene – which are both known to provide many benefits including to vision health – carrots are an ideal vegetable to plant during the summer months. If you happen to be having a summer without much rain, ensure that you water your carrots well.

4. Cauliflower – A cousin to broccoli, cauliflower is a popular vegetable which often produces large white florets. But recently, we have seen a resurgence of other colors of cauliflower, including yellow, green and purple.

5. Kale – Kale is a leafy, typically green vegetable that is rich in vitamins. In fact, one cup of cooked kale contains over 1000 percent of the daily recommended amount of vitamin K and nearly 100 percent of the recommended amount of vitamin A. One of the healthiest vegetables around, the summer months are a great time to plant from seed because the cooler weather will help to improve kale’s flavor.

6. Kohlrabi – While it is one of the less popular vegetables among gardeners, kohlrabi is definitely worth growing. This vegetable looks similar to a green (or purple) turnip, except that instead of being a root vegetable, it grows on the stem of the plant. Kohlrabi is actually part of the cabbage family and boasts a mild flavor which can best be described as somewhere between a turnip and a water chestnut.

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7. Lettuce – You may think of this green, leaf vegetable as something you’d plant in early spring. But mid-summer is actually a great time to begin planting it again. There are a huge number of varieties available which can be divided into five main types: loose leaf, butterhead, bibb, romaine and crisphead. So choose an old favorite or pick a new kind that you’d like to try.

8. Radishes – Widely considered the easiest vegetable to grow, radishes thrive in cooler temperatures. By direct sowing them mid-summer, you can have a bountiful fall harvest. And since these root vegetables don’t take up a lot of room, they are ideal for planting between other crops and in those corners of your garden where nothing else will fit.

9. Scallions (bunching onions) – Mild tasting and easy to grow, scallions also can be planted during the warmer months. They’ll be ideal for adding to those fall soups and casseroles! Scallions are also a common ingredient in Asian dishes. While some people choose to discard the very dark green ends, the entire onion is edible.

10. Spinach – Spinach does extremely well when planted from seed. This is another vegetable whose flavor improves in the colder months. Some studies have shown that spinach leaves that are brighter and crisper contain more vitamin C than those that have started to pale in color. This is a good reason to grow the vegetable yourself so that you and your family can eat it when it is at its freshest.

The months of July and August are a great time for gardening. Not only do you get to enjoy the crops that are maturing now, but you can start to look forward to your fall harvest. Simply choose the appropriate cool-weather vegetables that you would like to enjoy with your family during the cooler months and get planting!

Which vegetables would you add to this list? Share your tips in the section below:

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