Grow Greens in Winter: The 11 Best Vegetables You Can Plant Now

Whether you love tender greens, tough ones for cooking, or pungent ones for flavoring, there are plenty of cold-hardy species you can grow during the winter. Plant a few among your perennial vegetables for an endless supply of fresh greens in your kitchen. Some are perennials, others are biennials, and most of these species are frost-tolerant annuals.

Some of these greens you should start indoors and transplant into the veggie garden, while others you can directly sow without issues. Growers in warm winter regions like Southern California or Florida are in luck, as they can grow any of these species from late summer through late spring. Others, like myself in the Pacific Northwest, should choose the hardiest species for fall and winter sowing.

No matter which winter greens you select, you can confidently grow them while saving money, time, and resources. Greens are one of the easiest crops to grow, and they create seeds with little effort. Buy seeds this year and you’ll have an endless supply for as long as you live! Simply grow a few plants every year and let the best-performing ones go to seed. 

Collect the free seeds and sow them during fall or winter for tasty leaves throughout the cold months. These are 11 ideal winter greens to grow this season.

Perpetual Spinach Swiss Chard

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Perpetual Spinach Swiss Chard Seeds

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Windsor Fava Bean

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Windsor Fava Bean Seeds

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White Lisbon Scallion Onion

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White Lisbon Scallion Onion Seeds

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‘Perpetual Spinach’ Swiss Chard

	botanical name Beta vulgaris subsp. vulgaris ‘Perpetual Spinach’
	sun requirements Full sun to partial shade
	height 20”
	hardiness zones 2-11

This Swiss chard cultivar isn’t a spinach, but it sprouts tender stems and leaves that resemble the leafy green. ‘Perpetual Spinach’ is perfect for growers looking for the hardiness of Swiss chard but the flavor and texture of spinach. It’s frost tolerant, performing well throughout cold zones.

Swiss chard seeds can sprout in soils warmer than 40°F and below 90°F (5-32°C). Although freezing temperatures persist aboveground in winter, soils stay warm with natural insulation. Plant seeds a half inch deep under soil with mulch and let them sprout naturally. 

If hard frosts are frequent where you garden, you should start seeds indoors now for transplanting outdoors in a month or two. Protect mature seedlings from freezes with frost cloth, and they’ll grow dozens of spinach-like leaves for you to enjoy. 

‘Windsor’ Fava Bean

	botanical name Vicia faba ‘Windsor’
	sun requirements Full sun
	height 2-4’
	hardiness zones 2-11

Fava beans are versatile vegetables—they grow fresh beans in pods, dry beans later in the season, and edible leaves and flowers throughout their lifetime. They’re common on farms during the dormant season, since they prevent erosion and boost nitrogen levels in the soil.

‘Windsor’ is an heirloom type best for fresh eating. It reaches two to four feet tall, sprouting delicious foliage tips and leaves throughout the cool months. It’s a perfect variety for winter growing, as it’s extremely cold tolerant to 10°F (-12°C)!

In cold climates, plant seeds two months before your last frost when soil temperatures are 35°F (2°C) or warmer. In warm climates, plant favas for greens and beans during the coolest months of the year, from fall through winter.

A special note, if you have favism, a condition where you’re deficient in an enzyme called glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase, you should avoid handling and consuming fava beans.

Garlic

	botanical name Allium sativum
	sun requirements Full sun
	height 1-2’
	hardiness zones 3-9

Garlic may not be the first winter green you think of growing, but it’s an exceptionally cold-hardy one to try! Simply bury garlic cloves two or three inches deep from September through January. You’ll have edible garlic greens pop up in early spring!

If you’d like edible bulbs and greens, you’ll want to plant cloves seven to eight months before you harvest them. This is anytime until January for warm-climate growers, and from September through November for cold-climate gardeners. Garlic needs freezing temperatures to split into multiple cloves. Then, as spring warmth arrives, they swell to form a full head.

The leaves are edible year-round when green and perky. They’re milder than the bulbs and taste delicious in fresh recipes like salads or cooked ones like sautés and scrambles. If you’d only like greens and not bulbs, you may start cloves indoors in pots or suspended in water anytime. They’ll sprout roots and edible greens for months. 

‘White Lisbon’ Scallion Onion

	botanical name Allium cepa ‘White Lisbon’
	sun requirements Full sun
	height 12-18”
	hardiness zones 2-11

Bulbing onions tend to get mushy after hard frosts, while scallion onions stay perky and green. They’re an onion type that growers plant for their leaves rather than their bulbs. ‘White Lisbon’ is one exceptional scallion variety growing in cultivated gardens since the 1700s! It’s popular for its adaptable nature, as it does well in hot and cold climates.

Sow ‘White Lisbon’ seeds so long as soil temperatures remain above 45°F (7°C) from fall through spring. Cold-climate gardeners should start them indoors for transplanting in early spring. Move them to your garden beds a month before the last frost date in your area. 

This bunching onion variety is a bulbing cultivar rather than the perennial bunching type Allium fistulosum. It’s a biennial that best grows as an annual for its leafy foliage. Sow seeds close together and transplant seedlings into crowded conditions; this causes the leaves to develop more tender than if the plants have ample space. 

Siberian Kale

	botanical name Brassica napus subsp. pabularia
	sun requirements Full sun
	height 1-2’
	hardiness zones 6-9

Siberian kale is a relative of other kales, although it’s more cold-hardy and frost-tolerant than most other varieties. It sprouts curly leaves that bend backward off a central rosette low to the ground. The leaves have frilly ends that decorate salads and soups with bright green hues. 

Grow Siberian kale if you need a dependable leafy green amidst hard frosts. It’s reliable down to 10°F (-12°C)! If frosts are recurring and lower than this temperature, start seeds in pots indoors and transplant them a month or two before your last frost date in spring. Otherwise, you can sow them outdoors from fall through spring; they need cool, moist conditions to thrive.

Siberian kale and its close relatives form seeds that growers press to make canola oil. If you’d like to try making your own or want to save the seeds for more seedlings, let a few of your plants flower in spring and summer. They’ll form small black seeds in pods after successful pollination. Collect these brown, dry pods off the stems from summer through fall. 

Common Sorrel

	botanical name Rumex acetosa
	sun requirements Full sun
	height 18-24”
	hardiness zones 3-7

Common sorrel is a perennial green perfect for lazy gardeners like myself! It sprouts tender leaves that blend well with spinach and arugula for a crunchy, flavorful salad mix. Common sorrel is a must-have leafy green no matter where you garden—it thrives from USDA hardiness zones 3 through 7, and grows well as a winter annual in zones above 7.

Start common sorrel in your garden by sowing seeds from late fall through early spring. They sprout early while most other species are still waking from their winter slumber. Keep the seedlings moist in fertile soil so they grow well throughout the year.

Harvest sorrel leaves by picking young outer ones off of the stems. Leave some leaves in the middle so your specimens can bask in the sunlight and gain the necessary energy to produce more leaves. Freeze the leaves if you have no current use; they keep well for a year or longer in the freezer.

Arugula

	botanical name Eruca vesicaria subsp. sativa
	sun requirements Full sun
	height 1-2’
	hardiness zones 2-11

Arugula, or rocket, is an edible spicy green that loves sprouting and growing under cool, moist winter weather. It’s perfect for wet areas with mild winters, like the Pacific Northwest, where it’ll naturalize in your garden. Even if it doesn’t naturalize itself, it reaches maturity quickly from successive seed sowings. You’ll want more of the stuff after tasting its spicy, peppery, and lemony leaves.

Mild climate gardeners should sow seeds from fall through winter for cool weather harvests. Growers in cold zones should plant seeds when the soil temperature reaches 40°F (4°C) from winter through spring. Harvest young leaves off the stems when they reach two to four inches long.

Arugula sprouts seeds in little pods like broccoli or kale plants. Let a few of your specimens flower and go to seed, then collect the pods when they’re brown but before they pop open. Place them in a brown paper bag where they’ll explode tiny, black seeds after they dry fully. 

‘Baby Choi’ Bok Choy

	botanical name Brassica rapa subsp. chinensis ‘Baby Choi’
	sun requirements Full sun to partial shade
	height 20”
	hardiness zones 2-11

Bok choy sprouts some of the best leafy greens worldwide! They’re tasty, tender, and crunchy, working well in both fresh and cooked dishes. ‘Baby Choi’ is a small-leaved and cold-hardy type that reaches maturity quickly under mild temperatures. 

Bok choy offers two unique harvests while it lives. Slice the outer, mature leaves individually as you need. Another option is to cut the entire plant down once it reaches a considerable size. Harvest during mild weather of the morning or afternoon, and dunk the leaves in cold water before storing them to prevent field heat damage.

‘Baby Choi’ is frost tolerant, although it won’t survive extremely frigid winters with recurring hard frosts. Plant seeds during fall or winter in mild climates, and sow them a month before the last frost date in cold ones. 

Crown Daisy

	botanical name Glebionis coronaria
	sun requirements Full sun
	height 1-4’
	hardiness zones 5-9

Crown daisy also goes by the names edible chrysanthemum and Shungiku. Though it’s not often planted in American gardens, it is a popular edible winter green vegetable in various cuisines, lending a delicate flavor to pickled dishes, soups, and salads. This nutritious plant appreciates winter chill in mild regions and thrives where rains are frequent and temperatures are mild. It thrives too well in parts of California where it is classed as an invasive species.

In cold regions with extreme frost, sow this annual in late winter through early spring before the summer heat arrives. Plant seeds during the coolest months in all other regions without hard frosts. They’ll germinate and rapidly sprout to no more than three feet tall. 

Harvest the leaves while the plants are young for the best flavor. The greens may grow bitter or bad-tasting if they’re left to grow too long. If you miss this window, try using the flowers in salads and baked goods. Keep the mature specimens in your garden long after eating their greens for decorative white or yellow flowers atop the stems. Collect the seeds that sprout from these blossoms for a ready seedling supply for next year.

‘Mizuna’ Mustard

	botanical name Brassica rapa subsp. nipposinica ‘Mizuna’
	sun requirements Full sun to partial shade
	height 1’
	hardiness zones 2-11

Mustard greens, like arugula, are spicy, pungent, and peppery. They’re perfect for adding a culinary punch to salads, sandwiches, and cooked greens recipes. ‘Mizuna’ is a popular heirloom type valued for its delicious flavor and performance in garden settings. You can save its seeds knowing they’ll sprout seedlings like the parent plant. 

Start ‘Mizuna’ outdoors during fall or winter in areas without hard frosts. It needs low temperatures and moist weather to succeed, although it’s more heat tolerant than lettuce—it’ll bolt later than the crop during the growing season. If your area receives significant winter frosts, sow seeds a month or two before the final frost in spring. 

‘Mizuna’ sprouts edible leaves ready for picking in as little as three weeks from germination. Harvest the foliage throughout the plant’s lifetime, or let it grow big and cut it down at once. Another option is to harvest one-third of the plant and let it resprout for successive pickings. 

‘Matador’ Spinach

	botanical name Spinacia oleracea ‘Matador’
	sun requirements Full sun to partial shade
	height 6-8”
	hardiness zones 2-11

Grow spinach for their tender greens despite hard frosts! ‘Matador’ is an exceptionally cold-hardy variety that grows in freezing temperatures, producing dozens of leafy greens for you to enjoy throughout winter. It grows young leaves that work well as baby spinach. Mature plants retain the sweet flavor without growing bitter.

‘Matador’ is easy to start in your garden. Sow seeds as temperatures begin heating up in late winter when the soil is 40°F (5°C) or warmer. Early fall sowings overwinter well with mulch protection; use compost or leaf mold to insulate your tender spinach throughout the cold months. They’ll survive below-zero temperatures with the extra protection.