Best Shade Tolerant Vegetables for Your Garden
Whether your garden is in your backyard, balcony, patio, or elsewhere, there might be some areas of your gardening space that just don’t get as much sunlight as other areas. No need to worry though! There are PLENTY of shade tolerant vegetables that you can grow in these less exposed areas of your garden!
Leafy greens are among the most shade tolerant vegetables and often benefit from less exposure to intense sunlight. For example, vegetables like spinach, kale, cabbage and collard greens can all thrive with just a few hours of sunlight a day. Brassica vegetables such as broccoli, cauliflower, brussel sprouts, and cabbage, are also very shade tolerant and are a great addition to any garden!
Root veggies are another family of crops that can tolerate minimal sunlight. Carrots are a great example of a root veggie that can handle minimal sunlight. Although it may take them a little longer to mature with less sunlight, they are still just as tasty come harvest time! Similarly, potatoes prefer cooler weather and will also grow with minimal sunlight. Potatoes are a great vegetable to grow as they can be used to make a wide variety of dishes like french fries, mashed potatoes, baked potatoes, and more. Radishes are another vegetable that also needs partial shade to grow and can be used in a variety of salads and soups once they’ve fully matured!
Herbs are another group of crops that only require a few hours of sunlight per day. Mint, chives, cilantro and oregano, all will grow quicker with more access to sunlight but can still grow effectively with just about 4 hours of sunlight a day.
If not having full sunlight all day all the time is keeping you up at night, don’t stress about it! There’s A LOT of great, tasty vegetables that don’t need too much sunlight per day! Even though some might take a little bit longer to mature for harvest, those tasty potatoes or collard greens will be more than worth the wait!