Skip to main content
  1. Home
  2. Gardening

The low-maintenance vegetable garden: 5 unique perennial vegetable plants that produce year after year

Amazing perennial veggies to plant in your vegetable garden

By
Person holding produce in a bowl over a vegetable garden
Image used with permission by copyright holder

If you’re looking to plant a vegetable garden that’s low maintenance and sustainable, incorporating perennial vegetable plants is a great idea. Many of them are packed with nutrients and can offer visual interest and other benefits to your garden. Let’s explore the upside of growing perennial vs. annual vegetables, discuss which ones to plant, and the delicious recipes you can make with each of them.

Recommended Videos

Benefits of perennial vs. annual vegetable plants

Perennial vegetable plants are plants that live for more than two growing seasons and continue to produce edible parts year after year. There are a ton of benefits when it comes to perennial vs. annual vegetable gardens:

  1. Low maintenance: Perennial vegetable plants don’t need to be replanted every year. This saves time, effort, and money in the long run.
  2. Sustainability: These plants are more sustainable because they require less water, fertilizer, and other resources over their lifetime. They also help to build healthy soil and reduce erosion.
  3. Longevity: Perennials can live for many years, which means you can enjoy a consistent harvest without the need for replanting. This also reduces the risk of crop failure due to weather or other environmental factors.
  4. Nutritional value: Did you know that perennials often have higher levels of nutrients and minerals than their annual counterparts? This is because they have more time to establish strong roots and absorb nutrients from the soil.
  5. Multifunctional: Want more diversity in your garden? Perennials come in a variety of shapes, sizes, and colors and you can use them in a range of recipes. They also serve multiple purposes in your garden, as they can improve your soil, keep pests at bay, and even provide hedging in some cases.

Overall, perennial vegetable plants offer several benefits over annual vegetable plants, making them a great choice for a sustainable, low-maintenance garden.

A basket of fresh asparagus
DUSAN ZIDAR / Shutterstock

5 perennial vegetables your garden needs

So, which perennial veggies should you start with in your garden? We’ve got five amazing options, and we’ll also discuss which delicious recipes you can make with them.

Related

Asparagus

Asparagus is a nutrient-rich perennial vegetable that produces a harvest year after year with low maintenance. It usually takes around two to three years before you can harvest this veggie, as it needs time to establish strong roots before it can produce a good harvest. But once it gets going, you’ll have a delicious side dish for your steak or a nutritious addition to your fresco pasta.

Rhubarb

Rhubarb also takes a couple of growing seasons to be ready for harvest, but it’s packed with nutrients like vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants. It’s also a versatile ingredient that’s great in deserts, such as rhubarb pie, and can be used to make jams, jellies, and even glazes for savory meat dishes.

Artichokes

Great in dips, pasta, pizza, and even as a tasty side dish, artichokes are extremely versatile. Growing them is simple, and they’re a great addition to your vegetable garden. Artichokes are great companion plants, they’re drought tolerant, and they have a unique, ornamental appearance.

Horseradish

With its unique, spicy flavor, horseradish can up your culinary game in sauces, dips, and even homemade condiments. Growing this perennial root vegetable is simple, and it even serves as a pest deterrent in your garden.

Berry bushes

What’s not to love about fresh, homegrown berries? Eat them raw, add them to your waffles or oatmeal, or make sweet homemade jams. Berry bushes are low maintenance, provide the benefit of hedging your garden, and some varieties even deter pests.

Incorporating perennial vegetables into your garden can offer a wide range of benefits. They require less maintenance, are more sustainable, and can give you a reliable source of food year after year. By planting perennial vegetables, you can create a sustainable and enjoyable garden that provides beauty and nutrition — without all the work.

Editors’ Recommendations

Topics
Veronica Sparks
Veronica Sparks
Contributor
Veronica Sparks is a writer from Milwaukee, Wisconsin who loves writing about gardening, home décor, and DIY life. She’s…
These are the 5 best squash companion plants (and the worst)
Plant these next to your squash
Winter squash plants

Squash makes an excellent addition to summer and fall vegetable gardens. Squash on their own are relatively easy to grow, but gardens rarely contain only one plant. So what should you grow next to your squash, and what plants should be farther away? This guide to squash companion plants will answer all your questions. We’ve compiled a list of some of the best squash companion plants, as well as a few of the ones you should avoid, so that you can plan your next garden without worry.
Beans and peas

Beans and peas are both classic squash companion plants. Native cultures have been planting them together for centuries as part of the three sisters planting method. Beans are nitrogen-fixing plants, meaning they pull nitrogen from the air and reintroduce it to the soil, benefiting the squash plants. Peas are legumes, just like beans, and they will also add nitrogen back to the soil. The squash leaves shade the soil, preventing it from drying out too quickly.

Read more
Are tomatoes a fruit or a vegetable? Let’s find out
How are tomatoes classified?
Ripe tomatoes on a vine

It's such a common question, but still, people continue to ask: Are tomatoes a fruit or a vegetable? Depending on who you ask, you can get wildly different answers, so how can you be sure? Some people have strong opinions on the matter, but you might be wondering why it even matters if a tomato is a fruit or a vegetable. So we've put together this handy guide to answer all your questions, including the differences between fruits and vegetables, which one a tomato is, and why it matters when growing tomatoes in your garden.
What is the difference between fruits and vegetables?

To answer this, let’s look at what a fruit is and what a vegetable is. Fruits are a specific part of a plant that forms after a flower is pollinated. They carry the seeds of the plant, with the general idea being that an animal will eat the fruit and scatter the seeds elsewhere, or, if the fruit goes uneaten, then it will fall and rot, and the seeds will grow near the parent plant instead. Not all plants produce fruits, and not all fruits are edible.

Read more
Add a kick to your cooking: How to plant and grow your own ginger
Keep your ginger thriving with these tips
Ginger root on a table

Ginger is an incredibly useful plant to have in your kitchen. You can grind or grate it and use it to season meats or meat substitutes for stir-fries and soups. Ginger tea and ginger ale are often used to soothe upset stomachs. You can even make your own ginger beer and ginger candy at home.

While ginger is easy to find in most grocery stores, it's also easy to grow at home. You can grow ginger hydroponically or in a traditional garden, and can even plant grocery store ginger! This guide on how to grow ginger will walk you through everything you need to know to add this useful plant to your home or garden.
Can you grow ginger from a grocery store?

Read more