Quick Leafy Greens to Grow Without a Greenhouse

By Ann, gardener and garden designer at Ann's Garden Heaven

You don't need a greenhouse – or even a garden – to grow your own fresh greens. Some leafy crops are ready to eat in a week, and most are ready in under six. All you need is a bright windowsill, a few pots or a simple cloche.

Here are my favourite quick greens, fastest first, and exactly how to grow them.

Three ways to grow without a greenhouse

• A windowsill – south- or west-facing is best. Perfect for cress, microgreens, pea shoots and salad leaves, all year round.
• Pots and troughs – on a patio, balcony or doorstep. Any container at least 10cm deep with drainage holes will do.
• A cloche or fleece – a simple cover traps warmth, keeps off heavy rain and lets you sow outside earlier in spring and keep picking later into autumn.

Quick greens at a glance

• Cress – 7–10 days · windowsill · all year
• Microgreens (radish, mustard, broccoli) – 10–14 days · windowsill · all year
• Pea shoots – 2–3 weeks · windowsill or pots · all year
• Cut-and-come-again salad leaves – 3–5 weeks · windowsill, pots or cloche · all year indoors, March–September outside
• Rocket – 3–4 weeks · windowsill or pots · best sown in spring and late summer
• Mizuna and mustard leaves – 3–4 weeks · pots or cloche · March–September, and picks into winter under a cloche
• Baby spinach – 4–6 weeks · pots · March–May and August–September
• Pak choi – 4–6 weeks · pots · June–August
• Baby chard – 4–6 weeks · pots · April–August

In winter, windowsill crops grow more slowly because the days are short – allow an extra week or two.

1. Cress (7–10 days)

1. Put a few layers of damp kitchen paper, or 2cm of compost, in a shallow dish.
2. Scatter the seed thickly over the surface. There's no need to cover it.
3. Mist every day so it never dries out.
4. Snip with scissors when the stems are about 5cm tall.

Ann's tip: sow a new dish every few days for a constant supply. It's a brilliant first growing project for children.

2. Microgreens (10–14 days)

1. Fill a shallow tray with 3cm of seed compost and water it.
2. Scatter seed so it almost covers the surface, then press it in gently.
3. Cover with a lid or another tray for two days until the seeds sprout, then uncover and move into the light.
4. Snip at the base when the first leaves open – usually at 5–8cm tall.

Ann's tip: radish microgreens are the fastest and add a lovely peppery kick to sandwiches and salads.

3. Pea shoots (2–3 weeks)

1. Soak dried peas in water overnight.
2. Fill a tray with 3cm of compost and press the peas in, almost touching.
3. Keep the compost moist on a bright windowsill.
4. Cut at about 10cm tall, just above the lowest leaves. They'll regrow for a second cut.

Ann's tip: a packet of dried marrowfat peas from the supermarket works perfectly and costs far less than seed packets.

4. Cut-and-come-again salad leaves (3–5 weeks)

1. Fill a pot, trough or window box with multi-purpose compost – at least 10cm deep.
2. Scatter seed thinly and cover with 1cm of compost.
3. Water gently and keep moist. In summer, shade from hot midday sun.
4. Cut leaves about 3cm above the base. Leave the stumps and they'll regrow for three or four more cuts.

Ann's tip: sow a little every two weeks from spring to late summer so you never run out.

5. Rocket, mizuna and mustard leaves (3–4 weeks)

1. Sow thinly in pots or rows, 1cm deep.
2. Keep the soil moist – dry soil makes these leaves bolt (run to seed).
3. Pick the outer leaves young, at 8–10cm long.
4. Sow again every three weeks.

Ann's tip: rocket is happiest in the cooler weather of spring and early autumn. Under a cloche, mizuna will keep cropping well into winter.

6. Baby spinach, pak choi and chard (4–6 weeks)

1. Sow 2cm deep in pots or rows.
2. Thin seedlings to about 5cm apart for baby leaves (10cm for baby pak choi).
3. Water regularly – all three bolt if they dry out.
4. Pick outer leaves when they're 5–10cm long, or cut baby pak choi whole.

• Spinach: sow March–May and August–September. Skip midsummer – heat and long days make it run to seed.
• Pak choi: sow June–August. Earlier sowings bolt. Cover with fine netting to keep flea beetles off.
• Chard: sow April–August. It keeps cropping for months and often survives the winter.

My top tips for success

• Light is everything. If seedlings grow pale and floppy, move them somewhere brighter and turn them every day.
• Water little and often. Keep compost moist, never soggy – water from below for seedlings.
• Sow little and often. Small sowings every two to three weeks give a steady supply instead of a glut.
• Pick young. Baby leaves are the tastiest, and regular picking keeps plants producing.
• Use a cloche outside. It adds weeks to both ends of the season. Check our Garden Weather page for frosts before uncovering.

Shop this guide

• Seed Sowing – seed trays, plug trays, propagators and dibbers
• Winter Protection – cloches and fleece to grow outside for longer
• Garden Watering – a watering can with a fine rose

Start with a dish of cress or a tray of pea shoots this week. In a fortnight you'll be eating something you grew yourself – and I promise you'll want to grow more.

– Ann

Photos from Wikimedia Commons, shared under Creative Commons and similar free licences. Follow each link for the photographer and licence.