I have set up four-by-eight-foot raised vegetable beds in the only available spot in my backyard (here in the Pacific Northwest). In winter, the house casts its shadow over the entire bed area. With the progress of the seasons, the shadow recedes and leaves the beds entirely in the sun only by approximately mid-May. Similarly, the house shadow again begins to encroach on the bed area by the beginning of August.
What can I grow with this ultrashort growing season? What vegetables, if any, are likely to succeed here?
It sounds like you have about 75 days of well-lit growing season. The Maritime Northwest Garden Guide by Lisa Taylor (Seattle, WA: Seattle Tilth, 2014) lists several varieties of vegetables come to harvest within 75 days in our
area, and here’s what I see:
- carrots
- swiss chard
- cress
- kohlrabi
- lamb’s quarters
- lettuce (if picked young)
- arugula
- spinach
- summer squash
- turnips
- purslane
- shungiku (edible chrysanthemum)
- swiss chard
- kale
- tatsoi
- bok choi/pac choi
In 10 Terrific Vegetables, produced by the National Gardening Association, the author suggests that vegetable gardens require at least 6 hours of sun per day (South Burlington, Vt. : National Gardening Association, 2002). Some fast-maturing vegetable varieties listed include ‘Green Comet’ Broccoli (40 days) ‘Packman’ broccoli (53 days), Kentucky Wonder beans (60 days), Romano beans (75 days), basil (70 days), ‘Amsterdam’ and ‘Nantes’ carrots (60 days), ‘Sugarsnap’ peas (62 days–and they should be planted earlier, before the soil warms), ‘North Star’ red pepper (60 days), ‘Melody,’ ‘Space,’ ‘Tyee,’ and ‘Bloomsdale Longstanding’ spinach (all under 45 days), ‘Sun Gold’ tomato (57 days).
In general, you can find the number of days to maturity listed on the back of seed packets, so you can check if the varieties you want will ripen in time. Another quick-harvest vegetable is the radish, which can be ready to eat in just a few weeks. I’ve also had some luck with potatoes in less-sunny locations, although they do take a fair amount of space.
You might also consider growing raspberries, which don’t need sun quite as much as vegetables, in one of your beds.