Radishes might be the first vegetable thought of as quick “seed to harvest,” but there are others. While the ground still has some warmth in SoCal and before growth slows in December, consider planting any of these vegetables. Choose a sunny spot in the garden or plant in a container. Be sure to give them your best, compost-enriched soil to get them off to a good start. (This advice pertains to USDA Zones 9 and 10—warm winter areas.)

Arugula seeds germinate in just a few days and you can harvest the baby greens in 25-30 days. In unseasonable weather (too hot or too cold), it’s easy to move a 12 inch container for protection.

In the left photo, the arugula will finish as the kale plants need more room. I sow seed thickly as you can see and the container arugula is about a week from the first cutting.

Mesclun lettuce mixes grow quickly and allows multiple cuttings with good regrowth. Renee’s Garden Seeds offers six different mixes for a variety of flavors, colors and textures.

‘Auroch’ spinach from Johnny’s Seeds is fast-growing and upright—suitable for winter gardens. It can be harvested at any stage of growth and reaches maturity at 24 days.

Baby leaf spinach can be ready in 3-4 weeks. Though I have spinach transplants in the garden now, I’ll soon be planting ‘Little Hero’ baby leaf spinach in a container later this week.

Intricate dark green and maroon mustard greens deepen in color with cooler weather. Like other brassicas, they germinate quickly and these mustards can be harvested at the baby leaf stage (21 days), maturing at 40 days.

This fast-growing Tuscan baby leaf kale, imported from Italy, is ready for harvest at 25 days. Grow by the cut-and-come-again method for continuing harvests.

The red onion sets were planted 16 days ago and will be ready for first uses in another week. Onion sets are a shortcut but keep me in scallions through the winter with succession plantings.

Rapid Growth Tips

1. Use high quality potting mix for containers or amend garden soil with compost and organic fertilizer for vegetables.

2. Fertilize container plants and seedlings when the first true leaves appear. Dilute fish emulsion to one-half strength.

3. Make sure plants have optimal growing conditions, especially adequate sun exposure.

4. Maintain even soil moisture.