Easy herbs and vegetables for beginners, and when to plant them

Your first season should be easy and rewarding. Start with a few fast, forgiving plants, sow them at the right time of year, and you will be eating your own harvest within weeks.

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Start with herbs

• A Dubai gardening expert quoted by Gulf News suggests beginners start with herbs in small pots, as they are less prone to pests.
• BBC Good Food Middle East lists basil, parsley, coriander, mint and chives as herbs to plant in the UAE from October to March.
• The RHS says basil, chives and coriander like full sun, while mint and parsley cope with sun or part shade.
• Mint can become invasive, so the RHS recommends growing it in its own container.
• Coriander bolts (runs to flower) quickly, so the RHS suggests sowing a little every two weeks for a steady supply.

Easy vegetables for the cooler months

• BBC Good Food Middle East suggests lettuce, radishes, carrots and beetroot in October and November, and spinach, kale and Swiss chard from October to March.
• Fast growers such as lettuce, rocket, spinach and radishes are good if you start late, according to experts quoted by Gulf News.
• Tomatoes and peppers need full, unobstructed sun (Gulf News), so try them only if you have a really sunny spot.
• Strawberries can be grown in containers and planted in October and November (BBC Good Food Middle East).
• Root crops such as carrots need deep, loose soil, so give them a deep container (Gulf News).

Sowing seeds step by step

• Label the pot first with the plant name and date (RHS School Gardening).
• Fill the pot with crumbly peat-free multi-purpose compost, overfill it, tap it gently three times to settle it, then level the top.
• Check the seed packet for depth. The RHS guide says larger seeds go into a hole about twice the size of the seed; tiny seeds are scattered on the surface and covered with a thin sieved layer of compost.
• Water by standing the pot in a tray of water or with a watering can fitted with a fine rose, so you do not wash the seeds away.
• Keep pots somewhere sheltered with good light, such as a bright windowsill. Check daily and keep the compost moist, not soggy.

Spacing, thinning and harvesting

• Crowded seedlings compete for light and water. The RHS gives spacings for containers such as salad leaves about 5cm apart, beetroot and spinach about 10cm, and lettuce about 15cm.
• When seedlings come up too close together, pull out the weakest ones so the strongest have room.
• Pinch out or cut herbs before they flower to keep them bushy and productive (RHS).
• Pick leafy greens from the outside, leaving the centre to keep growing, so one plant gives several harvests.
• Gulf News experts suggest succession planting: sow a new batch every two weeks for a steady harvest.

A simple first-season plan

• Pot 1: mint (on its own). Pot 2: coriander or parsley. Pot 3: lettuce or rocket. Pot 4: radishes, which can be ready quickly.
• Keep a simple notebook or phone note: what you sowed, when, how often you watered and what happened.
• Expect some failures. Note what went wrong (too much sun, too little water, sown too deep) and adjust next time.
• Wash anything you harvest before eating it, as you would with shop-bought produce.