The Best Zone 9b Vegetables to Grow

If you live in zone 9b, the growing season is long and the growing options are endless. So keep reading to learn all about the best zone 9b vegetables you can grow.  

I’ve lived in the same small town my entire life and we are a zone 9b growing zone. And other than having to deal with really hot summers, it is a great place for a vegetable garden.

We have mild winters and a long growing season which allows you to plant multiple times a year and have extended harvests.

It’s also a nice growing zone because there really isn’t anything that can’t be grown here. You just have to plant certain vegetables strategically if they are not heat-tolerant.

For more information specific to zone 9b, check out my Zone 9b Vegetable Planting Guide.

So first, I’ll go over some of the best vegetables to plant and then go into all the details.

Best Zone 9b Vegetables to Plant

1.) Arugula

2.) Beans, Snap

3.) Beets

4.) Broccoli

5.) Brussels Sprouts

6.) Cabbage

7.) Carrots

8.) Cauliflower

9.) Celery

10.) Collards

11.) Corn

12.) Cucumbers

13.) Eggplant

14.) Kale

15.) Leeks

16.) Lettuce

17.) Okra

18.) Onions

19.) Parsnips

20.) Peas

21.) Peppers

22.) Potatoes

23.) Pumpkins, learn how to successfully grow pumpkins here.

24.) Radishes

25.) Spinach

26.) Squash

27.) Sweet Potatoes

28.) Swiss Chard

29.) Tomatoes, learn how to plant tomatoes from seed here.

30.) Turnips

As you can see, the list is long! There are so many options when it comes to what you can grow. The important thing is just knowing when to plant everything.

So be sure to get my vegetable planting schedule which will show you exactly when to plant each vegetable.

Once you figure out when to plant everything, the next step is mapping out how often to plant each crop.

To get the most out of the growing season you can do succession plantings, meaning that you plant at various times to get a continued harvest.

For example, instead of planting a whole garden bed of carrots, you can plant one row every few weeks to space out the harvesting.

So below I go over each vegetable and approximately how many days it takes from planting to harvest so that you can best plan your garden.

Crop Life Spans

Short-season crops are great because they can be planted multiple times throughout the season since they are ready for harvest in such a short amount of time.

Half-season crops take about half the growing season to reach maturity and can usually be planted twice a year. Once in spring and then again in fall.

Long-season crops take a long time to mature for harvest and are typically planted in spring and harvested toward the end of the growing season.

Zone 9b is a great zone for long-season crops because the plants have plenty of time to reach maturity.

Whereas some growing zones do not have a long enough season for long-season crops to fully mature.

Direct Seeded Crops

Below are the crops that should be planted directly by seed as well as the growing information on how quickly the crop matures.

Short Season (in days to harvest)

• Arugula, 30-60 (days)
• Baby Mix Lettuce, 25-40
• Radishes, 30-60
• Spinach, 30-40
• Turnips, 30-60

Half Season (in days to harvest)

• Beans, Snap, 50-60 (days)
• Beets, 50-60
• Carrots, 50-80
• Cucumbers, 50-60
• Okra, 50-60
• Peas, Snap, 50-65
• Summer Squash, 45-60

Long Season (in days to harvest)

• Corn, 65-85 (days)
• Parsnips, 100-120
• Potatoes (from tubers), 70-120
• Rutabagas, 90-100
• Pumpkins, 80-120
• Winter Squash, 80-120

Transplanted Crops

Below are the crops that do best when transplanted as well as the growing information on how quickly they are ready to harvest.

Short Season (in days to harvest)

• Lettuce heads, 30-45 (days)

Half Season (in days to harvest)

• Broccoli, 60-75 (days)
• Cabbage, 60-90
• Cauliflower, 50-80
• Collards, 50-60
• Eggplant, 55-75
• Kale, 50-60
• Swiss Chard, 50-60
• Tomatoes, 55-85

Long Season (in days to harvest)

• Brussels Sprouts, 90-120 (days)
• Celery, 75-85
• Leeks, 70-120
• Onions, 90-110
• Peppers, 70-120
• Sweet Potatoes (from slips), 90-100

Of all the above vegetables there are some that can be both direct-seeded and transplanted. But since zone 9b has such a long growing season you don’t have to be as concerned about starting all your vegetables early indoors.

Although, some vegetables will grow best if they are planted directly by seed into the garden.

So check out my article 11 Plants That Are Best to Direct Sow to learn more.

For more information about gardening in zone 9b, be sure to check out my Complete Zone 9b Vegetable Gardening Guide that is featured in the image below.

I am constantly referring back to it and it has helped me to have great success in my garden!

I have lived in zone 9b my entire life and my passion is to help other gardeners master gardening in this zone as well! And I am thankful that by creating this guide I have found a way to help hundreds of fellow gardeners have amazing success!

This guide includes:

• Exact planting dates for over 30 vegetables
• Indoor seed starting dates for spring and fall
• A list of proven heat-tolerant vegetables
• A list of zone 9b cool weather crops that will thrive
• The best planting methods for all vegetables in your spring and fall garden
• Plus specific zone 9b gardening strategies!

So if you want a complete gardening guide that can be your go-to for all zone 9b related gardening tasks, it is for you!

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