
When it comes to vegetables, you want something that will effortlessly come back each year. In other words, these are called edible perennials. They do require maintenance over the years but apart from that and the initial hard gardening labor, they are a good investment in the long term.
Here are a few perennial vegetables you should try planting:
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Table of contents
1. Asparagus

What are its basic care needs?
- Sun: 6 to 8 hours of direct sunlight daily.
- Soil: Well-draining, loose, and slightly acidic soil with a pH of 6.5 to 7.0. Avoid shallow soil and plant in the northern areas of a garden to prevent taller plants from shading it.
- Water: Weekly watering, but this may vary according to soil type. For example, sandy soil will need frequent watering every 2-4 days while clay soil will do best with 7-10 days. Check the soil beforehand to prevent overwatering the plant.
- Fertilizer: Yearly feeding in early spring or mid-summer harvest with compost or an all-purpose fertilizer.
- Special Care: Remove any weeds to prevent nutrient competition with the plant. Alternatively, you can lay down mulch as well.
Any precautions or notes on growing this vegetable? Do not harvest asparagus during the first year and collect sparingly during the 2nd year. For the best yield after the plant is fully established, start picking asparagus spears during the 3rd year.
2. Chayote

What are its basic care needs?
- Sun: 8 hours of direct sunlight daily.
- Soil: Well-draining, loamy, and acidic soil with pH of 4.5 to 6.5.
- Water: Weekly watering.
- Fertilizer: Yearly feeding in early spring with compost.
- Special Care: Use a trellis for the plant to climb upwards and grow better. You can also prune the vines back if they get too unruly.
Any precautions or notes on growing this vegetable? Harvest Chayote once it’s about 4-6 inches in diameters.
3. Globe Artichoke

What are its basic care needs?
- Sun: 6 to 8 hours of direct sunlight daily.
- Soil: Moist, well-draining soil filled with nutrients.
- Water: Weekly watering.
- Fertilizer: Yearly feeding after the last frost has passed with compost.
- Special Care: Apply mulch around the plant in fall to protect it in the harsh winter.
Any precautions or notes on growing this vegetable? Leave a few of the globe artichokes to flower each year to encourage beneficial bugs like bees to feed and pollinate on them. If you’re not sold on the idea, here’s an article on ‘Reasons Why You Should Have Beneficial Bugs in Your Garden’.
4. Horseradish

What are its basic care needs?
- Sun: 6 to 8 hours of direct or indirect sunlight daily.
- Soil: Moist, loose, and deep soil filled with nutrients. It should also be acidic with pH 5.5 to 5.7.
- Water: Weekly watering.
- Fertilizer: Monthly feeding during the growing season in spring and summer with a low Nitrogen fertilizer.
- Special Care: Horseradish can become invasive if it is not fully harvested each year. Ensure to dig up the whole plant and only replant the desired number of roots for easy tracking.
Any precautions or notes on growing this vegetable? Harvest horseradish as soon the foliage withers away from frost.
5. Jerusalem Artichoke/Sunchoke

What are its basic care needs?
- Sun: 6 to 8 hours of direct or indirect sunlight daily.
- Soil: Well-draining and slightly alkaline soil with pH 7 to 7.5.
- Water: Weekly watering, but the plant can tolerate dry conditions once it is established.
- Fertilizer: Yearly feeding in early spring with compost, but it is typically unnecessary as the plant is self-seeding and grows readily.
- Special Care: Trim the plant back after it finished flowering; some can be left behind to grow seeds for the birds to feed on.
Any precautions or notes on growing this vegetable? Jerusalem artichoke/Sunchokes may be invasive in some regions like North Carolina. Ensure to check within your local area whether it’s safe to grow the plant outdoors or restrict it to a container.
6. Okinawa Spinach

What are its basic care needs?
- Sun: 6 to 8 hours of direct or indirect sunlight daily.
- Soil: Well-draining and nutrient-rich soil.
- Water: Weekly watering.
- Fertilizer: Yearly feeding with compost in spring.
- Special Care: The plant is best propagated or grown by stem cuttings. Simply stick them into soil, whether in-ground or in a container, and keep it adequately watered.
Any precautions or notes on growing this vegetable? Harvest Okinawa spinach as often as you can to encourage more yield.
7. Rhubarb

What are its basic care needs?
- Sun: 8 hours of direct sunlight daily.
- Soil: Well-draining, loamy soil. Add compost into the ground to ensure plenty of nutrients for the plant.
- Water: Weekly watering, but more frequently during the growing season in spring and summer.
- Fertilizer: Yearly feeding in early spring after the last frost with an all-purpose fertilizer.
- Special Care: Divide the plant up every 2 years early in the season. This helps prevent overcrowding and complete nutrient depletion within the same area.
Any precautions or notes on growing this vegetable? Harvest rhubarb in the 2nd year when they are 12 inches or 2 feet long. Ensure to discard the leaves and only take the stalks as they are toxic. If you want more hefty stems, read this ‘7 Tips to Grow Thick Rhubarb Stalks’ article to get started!
8. Sochan/Cherokee Greens

What are its basic care needs?
- Sun: 6 to 8 hours of direct or indirect sunlight daily.
- Soil: Moist and well-draining soil.
- Water: Every 3-7 days, depending on the soil type.
- Fertilizer: Typically unnecessary if the ground is already nutrient-rich.
- Special Care: Regularly divide the rhizomes to prevent the plant from spreading too much. It’s also best to deadhead the blooms to promote more flowers.
Any precautions or notes on growing this vegetable? Don’t pluck wild Sochan/Cherokee Greens; check with your local area first if this is allowed. Certain regulations have been placed to prevent harvesting too much of the plant from its ancestral grounds.
9. Sweet Potatoes/Yams

What are its basic care needs?
- Sun: 6 to 8 hours of indirect sunlight daily.
- Soil: Well-draining and loamy or sandy soil.
- Water: Weekly watering. Don’t allow the soil to dry out as this will cause the sweet potatoes to crack.
- Fertilizer: Yearly feeding in spring with a low Nitrogen fertilizer.
- Special Care: Ensure to hand pull weeds regularly to prevent them overtaking the sweet potato crops. It’s also beneficial to do a 2-year crop rotation to prevent diseases.
Any precautions or notes on growing this vegetable? Harvest the sweet potatoes/yams before frost.
10. Yacon/Bolivian Sunroot

What are its basic care needs?
- Sun: 6 to 8 hours of direct sunlight daily.
- Soil: Well-draining, loamy, and slightly alkaline soil filled with nutrients.
- Water: Weekly watering.
- Fertilizer: Yearly feeding in early spring with an all-purpose fertilizer.
- Special Care: Cool nights at least about 64°F are necessary for the corms, i.e., tuberous roots to grow.
Any precautions or notes on growing this vegetable? None.
References:
- #PlantOfTheMonth: Sochan ᏐᏨᎾ (Rudbeckia laciniata) | McClung Museum of Natural History & Culture. (2022, May 26). Mcclungmuseum.utk.edu. https://mcclungmuseum.utk.edu/2022/05/26/sochan/
- Apr 13, F. | H. 1322 | U., & Print, 2022 |. (n.d.). Sweetpotato. Home & Garden Information Center | Clemson University, South Carolina. Retrieved November 20, 2022, from https://hgic.clemson.edu/factsheet/sweet-potato/
- BLOGS.IFAS. (2015, July 17). Perennial Vegetables. UF/IFAS Extension Leon County. https://blogs.ifas.ufl.edu/leonco/2015/07/16/perennial-vegetables/
- Freidig, A. (n.d.). Perennial Vegetable Crops. Master Gardener Program. Retrieved November 20, 2022, from https://mastergardener.extension.wisc.edu/articles/perennial-vegetable-crops/
- Globe Artichoke – Cynara cardunculus | North Carolina Extension Gardener Plant Toolbox. (n.d.). Plants.ces.ncsu.edu. Retrieved November 20, 2022, from https://plants.ces.ncsu.edu/plants/cynara-cardunculus/common-name/globe-artichoke/
- Growing asparagus in home gardens. (n.d.). Extension.umn.edu. https://extension.umn.edu/vegetables/growing-asparagus#starting-crowns-192561
- Growing Horseradish. (n.d.). Penn State Extension. https://extension.psu.edu/growing-horseradish
- Growing rhubarb in home gardens. (n.d.). Extension.umn.edu. Retrieved November 20, 2022, from https://extension.umn.edu/vegetables/growing-rhubarb#harvesting-923466
- HS1435/HS1435: Yacon, a Potential Tuberous Crop for Florida. (n.d.). Edis.ifas.ufl.edu. Retrieved November 20, 2022, from https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/publication/HS1435
- Resources, U. of C., Division of Agriculture and Natural. (n.d.). Chayote. Mgsantaclara.ucanr.edu. Retrieved November 20, 2022, from https://mgsantaclara.ucanr.edu/garden-help/vegetables/chayote/
- Sunchoke – Helianthus tuberosus | North Carolina Extension Gardener Plant Toolbox. (n.d.). Plants.ces.ncsu.edu. Retrieved November 20, 2022, from https://plants.ces.ncsu.edu/plants/helianthus-tuberosus/common-name/sunchoke/
- Toensmeier, E., Ferguson, R., & Mehra, M. (2020). Perennial vegetables: A neglected resource for biodiversity, carbon sequestration, and nutrition. PLOS ONE, 15(7), e0234611. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0234611
- Tropical Spinaches – Gardening Solutions – University of Florida, Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences. (n.d.). Gardeningsolutions.ifas.ufl.edu. Retrieved November 20, 2022, from https://gardeningsolutions.ifas.ufl.edu/plants/edibles/vegetables/tropical-spinaches.html
- Victory Garden Reinvented! Webinar Fall Gardening & Perennial Vegetables Part 9 on 6.09.2020 – Penn State MediaSpace. (n.d.). Psu.mediaspace.kaltura.com. Retrieved November 20, 2022, from https://psu.mediaspace.kaltura.com/media/Victory+Garden+Reinvented%21+Webinar+Fall+Gardening+%26+Perennial+Vegetables+on+6.09.2020/1_0kc6sy47
- Yard and Garden: Planting Perennial Vegetables. (n.d.). News. Retrieved November 20, 2022, from https://www.extension.iastate.edu/news/yard-and-garden-planting-perennial-vegetables