Teeny tiny vegetables are one of the hottest trends in gardening right now. They often mature more quickly than their larger cousins so that you can have homegrown produce earlier in the season. You might even get two crops from some of these miniature vegetables—and they also grow on micro-sized plants so that you won’t need much space to garden.
Micro-Tom Tomato
This tiny tomato plant is a tabletop delight. It maxes out to about 8-10 inches tall and produces delicious cherry-sized tomatoes that mature in about 50-60 days from seed. You can grow these outdoors or near a sunny window indoors.
Mini Bell Peppers
Miniature bell peppers are beautiful and tasty. They’re perfect for snacking, throwing in lunch bags, or arranging beautifully on a veggie tray. The peppers get about 2 inches long and mature to a variety of jewel colors. The plants are reasonably compact, maxing out about 2 feet tall.
Dwarf Yellow Crookneck Squash
These dwarf squash produce adorable and tasty small-size fruits. The plants still take up a fair bit of space, but less than average squash.
They taste best when they’re young, smooth, and yellow, and are also outstanding ornamentals, maturing a deep orange with the classic warty look.
Romeo and Short Stuff Carrots
Carrots can be challenging to grow if you don’t have much space, but these two are the perfect patio planter carrots.
Romeo carrots grow into perfect little carrot globes, about 1.5 inches across. Short Stuff carrots are another excellent option for patio gardening, maxing out about 4 inches long. Both are very tasty!
Baby Ball Beets
Baby ball beets are the perfect compliment to Romeo carrots, creating perfect tiny globes about 1.5 inches across. These beets cook fast, so they’re great for a quick garden supper or pickling
Mexican Miniature Watermelon
Sometimes called cucamelons, these mini watermelons taste like cucumbers, but they have a fresh sweetness that tastes a bit citrusy. This plant loves heat, so give it a full sun location and a consistent watering routine.
Windowbox Mini Basil
Miniature basil plant is perfect for a window box or tabletop gardening. It’s as flavorful and aromatic as traditional basils, but much more compact. The plants grow to a tidy globe about 8-10 inches tall.
Striped Guadeloupe Eggplant
This eggplant is another micro plant perfect for patio gardening. It grows to about 12-14 inches tall and produces pretty purple and white fruits that are about 6 inches long. Eggplant also loves tropical conditions, so they’ll do best in a sunny setting.
Hearts Of Gold Cantaloupe
It may produce smaller, 2-3 pound sweet fruits, but the plant itself will still take up a fair bit of space like most melons. Cantaloupe needs lots of heat, so a full sun location with consistent watering is best.
Mini White Cucumbers
These cucumbers are a little more compact than other varieties, producing pale-colored fruits that taste best when harvested at about 3 inches long. The vines rarely get longer than 3 feet long, so they can quickly be grown up a trellis from a patio pot.
Tom Thumb Peas
Another excellent planter option! They grow to about 8 inches tall and are frost tolerant. You can probably grow several crops of these through the winter in Florida. Tuck a few of these plants anywhere you have space in the garden.
Crunchkin Pumpkins
These small pumpkins are beautiful. They still take up a fair bit of space, but are worth growing. They’re more flat and broad in shape, with pronounced ribs and turn a deep orange color. The hard shell makes them last well for ornamental purposes.
Are you going to add some teeny tiny vegetables to your Florida garden this summer? Stop by the garden center and check out our seed selection to find your new favorite micro vegetables.