9 Easy and Fast-Growing Vegetables You Can Harvest in (Almost) No Time

One of the fastest-growing vegetable plants you can grow is radish. Some types are ready to eat in as little as three weeks from seeding. They are a cool-season vegetable, meaning they do best in spring or fall, before or after the heat of summer. Harvest radishes as soon as they are about bite-size; the longer they remain in the ground, the spicier they become. Overmature radishes become woody and cracked.

Light: Full sun

Water: Plant in well-drained soil (radishes will rot in soggy, poorly drained soil)

Size: Up to 3 feet tall

Zones: 2-11

Buy It: 'German Giant' Radish Seeds, $3.95, Burpee

Growing your own spinach is super easy to do in spring or fall. So the seeds right in your garden as soon as it is no longer frozen after winter, and again in fall when temperatures begin to cool off. You can begin harvesting individual leaves about 3 weeks after sowing for use as baby greens for your favorite recipes. Or pick whole plants 5-6 weeks after seeding by pulling or cutting at the soil line.

Light: Full sun or part sun

Water: Plant in moist, well-drained soil

Size: Up to 12 inches tall

Zones: 2-10

Buy It: Palco Hybrid Spinach Seeds, $1.95, Park Seed

Sometimes called snap beans or green beans, this plant is a must-have in homegrown vegetable gardens. It's easy to grow, bothered by few pests, and if you choose a pole type, it takes up hardly any square footage in the landscape. Beans come in many colors, shapes, and sizes. Pods may be green, yellow, purple, or speckled. Begin sowing seeds in your garden in late spring. You can keep sowing more every two weeks to give you a continuous harvest until fall. Pods are ready to pick when 6-8 inches long, about 6-7 weeks after planting.

Light: Full sun

Water: Plant in well-drained soil

Size: Up to 7 feet tall

Zones: 2-10

Buy It: Heirloom Pole Beans, $2.99, Renee's Garden

These cabbage relatives do double duty because you can eat both their spicy greens and mild-tasting roots. Turnips grow best in cool conditions, so plant them early in spring or in late summer for a fall crop. Harvest turnip greens when they reach 4-6 inches tall, about 4 weeks after sowing.  Roots mature in 6-7 weeks after planting, depending on the variety.

Light: Full sun or part sun

Water: Plant in well-drained soil

Size: Up to 12 inches tall

Zones: 2-9

Buy It: Oasis Hybrid Turnip Seeds, $3.95, Burpee

There's almost always space in your vegetable garden for arugula. This leafy green doesn't need much room to grow its peppery leaves. Sow the seeds in spring or fall, and then you can start harvesting the leaves as soon as 4 weeks after planting. Handpick individual leaves to extend the harvest, or pull up the entire plant.

Light: Full sun or part sun

Water: Plant in moist, well-drained soil

Size: Up to 3 feet tall

Zones: 2-11

Buy It: Heirloom Arugula Seeds, $2.95, Eden Brothers

Just one cucumber plant will produce armloads of the crunchy, refreshing fruits, and they're easy to grow, too. Training cucumbers on trellises and along fences allows for efficient use of space. Keep plants watered well to avoid bitterness in your cukes. Once fruits set, they develop quickly: Many varieties begin ripening within 6-7 weeks after planting. Harvest every few days to prevent oversize fruits that may be seedy and bitter.

Light: Full sun

Water: Plant in moist, well-drained soil

Size: Up to 6 feet tall

Zones: 2-11

Buy It: 'Tokyo Green' Cucumber Seeds, $3.50, Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds

A cool-season leafy green renowned for its health benefits, kale is also a pretty plant to grow. Varieties can be blue-green, green, or burgundy in color, and ruffled, curly, deeply cut, or flat in form. Sow seeds in your garden in early spring. Pick baby greens 3-4 weeks after seeding. Give the whole plants another 2-3 weeks before harvesting mature leaves.

Light: Full sun

Water: Plant in moist, well-drained soil

Size: Up to 3 feet tall

Zones: 7-9

Buy It: Organic Kale Garden Blend Seeds, $2.95, Park Seed

Also known as scallions or spring onions, green onions are ready to be harvested in as little as 5 or 6 weeks after planting. Start sowing seeds in early spring and continue sowing them every two weeks if you'd like a continuous harvest into summer. Pick green onions when they are 6-8 inches tall by pulling the whole plant up out of the ground.

Light: Full sun

Water: Plant in moist, well-drained soil

Size: Up to 8 inches tall

Zones: 2-11

Buy It: Scallion Seeds, $4.95, Burpee

A type of Chinese cabbage, bok choy forms tall narrow heads with thick white stalks and deep green leaves. This leafy green is popular in salads and stir-fry. Most varieties of this easy-to-grow vegetable plant are ready to harvest 45 to 50 days after planting in spring. Because bok choy prefers partial sun, it's a good plant for indoor vegetable gardening.

Light: Part sun

Water: Plant in moist, well-drained soil

Size: Up to 2 feet tall

Zones: 4-7

Buy It: Organic Baby Bok Choy Seeds, $3.14, Sustainable Seed Company