Garden Planning: Seeds and Plants I am Growing in 2024
After pouring over seed catalogues these past few weeks and after organizing my current seed collection, I have selected the seeds and plants that I will be growing in 2024! I am growing a whopping 40 varieties of seeds and installing 11 plants (shrubs, tubers, etc.) in our townhouse garden spaces. It may seem a bit extensive, but I think I can make it work!
I am also going to install some permanent plants such as roses, hydrangeas, and a blueberry bush. Plus, I will be growing several types of dahlias. Want to see how I plan to do this? Read on down below and check out my YouTube video to learn more about all these seed varieties that I will be growing this year!
This post contains affiliate links for West Coast Seeds. I am a brand ambassador and if you use my link, I will receive a small commission from the sale at no extra cost to you! This will support me on my gardening journey and will help me bring more garden content to you!
Seeds for Our Kitchen Garden
Tomatoes
Of course I have to start this post off with my favourite: tomatoes! I only have space for four tomato plants in our new/planned kitchen garden so I have narrowed down my selection to my top favourites.
For cherry tomatoes, I will be growing Sungold and Sweet Million. Sungold cherry tomatoes are incredibly sweet and are perfect eaten straight off the vine. Sweet Million cherry tomatoes on the other hand are less sweet, but still pack lots of tomato flavour. Plus, they look beautiful as they grow on long trailing vines.
I have also selected two regular indeterminate tomatoes for the garden this year. Mortgage Lifter is a nice red heirloom tomato with lots of flesh and very little juice. Pink Brandywine is another heirloom tomato with pink skin and lots of great flavour! I plant to use these tomatoes for sauce and for caprese salads this summer.
Peppers
Next, I am spicing up the garden with some pepper plants. I have selected four different peppers to grow this year including Pepperoncinis, Black Magic Jalapeños, Scotch Bonnets, and the hottest, Red Habaneros. I enjoy grilled pepperoncinis and jalapenos during the summer, and also make hot sauces and marinades with the scotch bonnets and habanero peppers 🔥
Vegetables
Despite a small garden space, I am still planning to grow lots of vegetables. I have selected seed varieties that I am able to grow vertically (on trellises or wire cages) and ones that do not take up too much of a footprint. These seed varieties include Mini Me Cucumbers, Super Sugar Snap Peas, and Tiana Butternut Squash.
I have also chosen other vegetables that do not take up too much garden real estate and have a high yield including Kincho scallions, Royal Burgundy Bush Beans, and Maxibel Filet Bush Beans.
The only veggie that does take up substantial space is the Goldy zucchini. While I know zucchini is super cheap to buy during the summer months, I love having a plant just for the flowers! They go great in salads, in pasta, and on pizza!
Lettuce
Lettuce is a super easy vegetable to grow from seed. My plan is to add lettuce to the garden throughout the season where I may have empty spaces. For example, the majority of the garden will be empty in early spring until other plants become more established, so I will be able to sow and harvest lettuce during the spring and early summer months.
Once the garden becomes crowded, I will hold off on sowing lettuce until the fall when cooler temperatures arrive and the rest of the heat loving plants die back. I have used this gardening method for lettuce for many years and in gardens big and small. I find that spring and fall are the best times to grow lettuce as it is not too warm and plants are less likely to bolt quickly.
I will be sowing Buttercrunch lettuce, Little Gem lettuce and Super Gourmet Salad Blend this yea as they offer lots of flavour, texture, and colour!
Herbs
A kitchen garden is not complete without herbs! As a recipe developer, I love having fresh herbs in my garden to use in many different recipes. Plus, by growing them myself, I know that they are always going to fresh and are organic. I have selected the following herbs for my garden this year: Chives, Lions Mane chives, Genovese Basil, Siam Queen Thai Basil, Dark Green Italian Parsley, Santo Cilantro, English Thyme, Ella Organic Dill, and Borage.
Flowers
To improve pollination in the kitchen garden, I always grow a few flowers in and amongst my fruits, vegetables, and herbs to help attract pollinators. Pollinators are so beneficial to the success of gardens, and the best way to bring them around is through bright and colourful flowers.
I am growing several dahlias in our kitchen garden including: Arabian Night, French Cancan and Platinum Blonde. I will also intersperse some Oklahoma Ivory and Oklahoma Salmon Zinnias, as well as some Potomac Ivory snapdragons for extra colour and texture.
Seeds and Plants for Our Cut Flower Garden
Dahlias
Dahlias are going to bring the most colour and volume to our cut flower garden this year. I have chosen several dahlias in the pink and orange colour palette to add some femininity and cheerfulness to our garden this year. These include: Sweet Nathalie, Sweet Suzanne, Linda’s Baby, and Tyrell.
I am also going to be adding in a feature plant in this cut flower garden: an Incrediball Hydrangea. This hydrangea is from Proven Winners and is my dream hydrangea as it emerges light green, turns white, and ages back to a lime green. I am so happy to have this plant in my collection and will enjoy it for many years to come!
I am also planning on scattering in some Snowpuff Double Click Cosmos, Xanthos Cosmos, Blue Boy Cornflower, and two types of sunflowers for extra colour, Peredovik and ProCut White Lite. A few extra sprigs of Burgundy Grain Amaranth and Hot Biscuits Amaranth will make this cut flower garden feel festive all the way throughout the fall.
Seeds and Plants for Our Mediterranean Garden
If all of those seeds weren’t enough, I am adding a few more to our Mediterranean garden. This garden will be filled with Mediterranean plants such as a fig tree, an Arbequina olive tree, and a rosemary topiary.
Since these main plants are all very green, I want to add a pop of colour with some Dwarf Munstead Lavender, Ellagance White Lavender, and a David Austin Windemere Rose. During the spring months, I also want to grow the Early Multiflora Sweet Peas for both colour and fragrance.
Well…if you gotten this far in the post, you probably think I am totally crazy for growing all of these seeds! It is much less that what I am used to growing, but will still be quite substantial (and beautiful!) once all the plants are fully grown by mid-summer.
Follow along with me here on my blog and YouTube channel to watch my garden come to life this year…and to see if I can fit all these plants in! 🤪 Happy gardening!
Don’t know where to start?
No problem! Explore my curated seasonal recipes, gardening tips, and entertaining ideas that inspire you to enjoy the best of the season, every day.
Get seasonal living tips once a month.
Receive monthly updates featuring seasonal recipes, gardening tips, entertaining ideas and more!
One thought on “Garden Planning: Seeds and Plants I am Growing in 2024”
Such great suggestions and ideas for planning a garden. I am really fond of bell peppers and cherry tomatoes. As you have suggested, I always want to grow Sun gold cherry tomatoes and Scotch Bonnet bell pepper in my garden.