Key Takeaways

• Don't let the cold weather stop you from gardening. Focus on winter gardening by planting herbs like winter savory, oregano, and basil indoors.
• Winter vegetables like kale, spinach, and onions can be grown during the cold months.
• Start your spring garden in late winter with winter radishes and Swiss chard.

When sweater weather arrives, it brings frost and snow, and many gardeners wrap up for the season. However, chilly days don't have to stop you from honing your gardening skills.

Instead of packing away your gardening tools for the season, switch your focus to winter gardening. Dust off your gardening gloves, discover 12 of the best herbs and vegetables to plant in winter, and start planting!

1 Winter Savory Thrives in Indoor Herb Gardens

Cultivate near a sunny window and harvest after two months

Winter savory (Satureja montana) is a fantastic herb to grow indoors in winter. In an outdoor herb garden, it goes dormant during winter and then produces new foliage in the spring. However, growing herbs indoors in winter allows you to continue enjoying fresh, winter savory.

• Fill a plant container with organic compost.
• Scatter a light layer of seeds on top of the compost.
• Germinate seeds in full sun, at 65 to 68 degrees Fahrenheit.
• Seeds take up to three weeks to sprout after sowing.

2 Garlic Is a Hardy Winter Garden Vegetable

Chilly temperatures of 32 to 50 degrees Fahrenheit promote a bumper crop

Garlic (Allium sativum) is an excellent winter vegetable to plant because cold weather promotes a better yield.

• Garlic needs two months at 32 to 50 degrees Fahrenheit.
• Exposure to winter weather encourages large bulbs at harvest time (June to July).
• Plant garlic in November, 2 inches deep in the soil with the clove's peak facing up.

3 Basil Flourishes in Kitchen Herb Gardens

Basil is a beginner-friendly herb to grow in winter for fresh seasoning

Basil (Ocimum basilicum) is a flavorful choice for growing herbs in winter indoor kitchen gardens. It grows well with tomato plants, making a wonderful companion for indoor tomatoes.

• Tuck basil seeds ¼ inch deep in potting soil.
• Maintain cozy temperatures of 50 to 70 degrees Fahrenheit.
• Sprouts germinate 5 to 10 days after sowing basil seeds.

4 Grow Winter Vegetables Like Kale for Fresh Greens

Kale tastes sweeter after frost and is hardy to 25 degrees Fahrenheit

Kale plants (Brassica oleracea var. acephala) are delicious leafy vegetables to plant in winter. They are an excellent choice if you want to cook with home-grown vegetables after a fall frost.

• Amend the garden beds before planting. Till 1 inch of organic matter (compost) for every 100 square feet of your garden.
• Plant seeds ¼ to ½ inch deep in your garden bed when it's 45 to 85 degrees Fahrenheit.
• Kale is hardy to 25 degrees Fahrenheit — frost infuses sweet flavors into the leaves.

5 Onions Are Savory Winter Vegetables

Seeds germinate at temperatures as low as 40 degrees Fahrenheit

Onions (Allium cepa) are delicious winter vegetables that complement a wide range of recipes. Growing onions in winter, is a fun way to keep your vegetable garden thriving during the coldest months of the year.

• Directly sow onion seeds ¼ to ½ inch deep in your garden.
• Plant onion seeds a month before it plummets to a chilly 40 degrees Fahrenheit.
• Depending on the variety, you can also plant onions in the spring or fall.

6 Cultivate Spinach in Winter With Row Covers

Briefly lift the row cover if it warms to 40 degrees Fahrenheit for a winter harvest

Spinach (Spinacia oleracea) thrives in cool temperatures and tolerates chilly weather as low as 20 degrees Fahrenheit.

• Sow spinach seeds, ¼ to ½ inch deep when the soil cools to 70 degrees Fahrenheit in autumn.
• Ohio State University advises that you prepare spinach for snowy winter weather by using row covers to protect the plants.
• If temperatures rise to 40 degrees Fahrenheit, you can check your crop, and temporarily lift the row cover to pick spinach. Once the soil is consistently 40 degrees Fahrenheit or warmer, you can keep the protective row cover off.

7 Enjoy Winter Herbs With Dill Indoors

Infuse your indoor winter herb garden with aromatic dill

Fresh dill (Anethum graveolens) adds savory flavors to home recipes, enhances the aesthetic of your home with bright greenery on a snowy day, and elevates indoor herb gardens with a delightful aroma.

• Sow seeds ¼ inch deep in pots with a high-quality potting mix that has superb drainage.
• Keep temperatures around 70 degrees Fahrenheit to promote germination.
• Watch for cheerful sprouts to pop out of the soil up to two weeks after planting.

8 Elevate Your Kitchen in Winter With Mint Plants

Grow mint from stem cuttings and plant it in 12-inch containers

Cultivating mint (Mentha) is an inspiring way to uplift your home with herbal fragrances when the earth freezes outside.

• Mint grows wells from propagations. Trim a 6-inch stem from your mint plant, and then pop it in a jar with water until you see roots forming.
• Transplant your mint stem into a container by laying it flat (horizontally) on top of the surface of the potting mix, and cover the roots with soil.
• Mint loves to spread, so choose a spacious 12-inch container.

9 Cultivate Rosemary for Evergreen Winter Herbs

Rosemary provides a year-round opportunity for harvesting

Although many herbs grow best indoors during the winter, rosemary (Salvia rosmarinus) has evergreen foliage. According to the University of Maryland, this winter herb can tolerate frigid temperatures as low as 5 degrees Fahrenheit.

• Encourage a thriving plant by taking stem cuttings for propagation 8 to 10 weeks before the final spring frost, then, transplant outdoors.
• Trim 4 to 6 inches off of a rosemary branch (partial woody or brown and green growth).
• Remove the foliage from ½ the lower stem, then use sharp scissors to shave away 1 inch of the woody bark on the stem's end.
• Plant the cutting in a container that is a minimum of 4 inches deep, so you can place the stem 3 inches into the soil.
• Irrigate the soil to keep it moist. Find out if your soil needs more water by popping a toothpick into it. If the toothpick is dry, it needs water!

10 Winter Radishes Are Cool-Season Crops

Start your vegetable garden in late winter with daikon radishes

Winter radishes, also known as daikon radishes (Raphanus raphanistrum subsp. sativus) are a crisp and refreshing selection for winter vegetable gardens.

• North Carolina State University, suggests that you can plant winter radishes in February.
• Plant radish seeds ¼ to 1 inch deep, depending on the cultivar's preferences.
• Encourage a bumper crop by sowing winter radish seeds every 14 days.

11 Get an Early Start With Swiss Chard

Sow seeds when the soil is 40 degrees Fahrenheit

Swiss chard (Beta vulgaris var. cicla) is another fabulous vegetable to cultivate in a late winter garden. It thrives in cool weather and is most flavorful if you harvest it before the sizzling heat of summer.

• Sow seeds when the soil warms to 40 degrees Fahrenheit in late winter, or three weeks before the last frost in spring.
• Place the seeds on the surface of the garden bed, then spread a thin ½ to 1-inch layer of soil over top.
• Watch for sprouts one to two weeks after direct sowing.

12 Enjoy Fresh Oregano in the Middle of Winter

Cultivate plants in 6-inch pots, under fluorescent lights for 10 hours daily

Oregano (Origanum) thrives in containers, making it a flavorful choice for indoor gardening when the world outside is frosty.

• Scatter oregano seeds over the surface of potting mix in a 3-inch container and maintain temperatures of 60 degrees Fahrenheit to promote germination.
• Thin seedlings, so that each plant has a 6-inch pot.
• Supplement low winter light by placing oregano within 8 to 10 inches of fluorescent lights for 10 hours per day.

Make the most of chilly winter weather by adapting your gardening routine.

• Cultivate a thriving winter vegetable garden with kale, spinach, and onions.
• Get a head start for spring harvests by planting Swiss chard and radishes in late winter.
• Enjoy fresh herbs in the comfort of an indoor kitchen herb garden all year long!

Then share your tips with friends and family so they can enjoy flavorful harvests of fresh vegetables and herbs in winter.