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If you and your family like vegetables, then consider growing them yourselves! Some things aren’t worth growing, but I’ve come up with a list of the vegetables that save the most money to grow. These are also relatively easy to keep alive—many of these you actually have to work to kill them!
Keep in mind that these will not save you money if you don’t actually eat these things. If you’re just as happy buying jarred minced garlic, don’t grow your own garlic. Also keep in mind that if you’ve never grown vegetables, there will be some upfront costs. You can see more tips in our roundup of gardening posts.
Vegetables that Save the Most Money to Grow
Herbs
Which ones: rosemary, sage, mint, thyme, basil, cilantro, oregano
When to start: early spring, after the last frost date
Why they save money: Buying fresh herbs at the store can be really expensive, and sometimes you don’t end up using all of it. If you have them growing in your garden, you can just snip off what you need. For many of these herbs, removing sprigs actually makes them want to grow even more!
Tomatoes
Which ones: cherry or grape tomatoes, Roma tomatoes, Cherokee purple heirlooms
When to start: late spring or early summer
Why they save money: If you like tomatoes, growing them at home will produce way more and many varieties keep growing all season.
Leafy greens
Which ones: lettuces, spinach, kale, chard
When to start: early spring, 3-4 weeks before the last frost
Why they save money: Like herbs, when you cut leaves off the plants, they will grow more. It basically gives you an endless supply of greens for the harvest season!
Peppers
Which ones: Bell peppers or other hot peppers
When to start: A few weeks after the last frost
Why they save money: Hot peppers especially are overproducers. You’ll have way more than you can eat!
Summer squash
Which ones: Yellow or zucchini
When to start: late spring to early summer, after danger of frost
Why they save money: If you can avoid pests, these will produce so many vegetables, you’ll be begging your neighbors to take them off your hands!
