Planning a Vegetable Garden with ADHD: My Easy, Flexible Approach
Spring is here, which means it’s time to plan my vegetable garden! Planning a vegetable garden with ADHD is all about embracing flexibility and fun. As someone with ADHD, I thrive on novelty and variety—eating the same foods over and over just doesn’t work for me. I need a mix of hearty, low-maintenance plants that keep producing, veggies that freeze well, and options that allow me to switch things up throughout the season.
Here’s how I make it happen, plus some easy ADHD-friendly gardening tips to keep things fresh all year long!
🌱 Step 1: Choosing the Right Plants
When you’re planning a vegetable garden with ADHD, picking low-maintenance, versatile plants is key. Since I get bored easily, I focus on plants that give me variety without extra work. My go-to picks include:
Tomatoes (Roma & Cherry) – Great for fresh eating, sauces, and freezing.
Bell Peppers & Banana Peppers – Perfect for stir-fries, roasting, and freezing.
Zucchini & Summer Squash – Keeps producing all season and freezes well.
Cucumbers – Easy for snacking, salads, and canning pickles.
Green Beans – Super easy to grow, pick, and freeze.
Butternut and Spaghetti Squash – Perfect for pasta substitution and roasting for salads.
Herbs (Basil, Cilantro, Parsley) – Add variety to meals without taking up much space.
Hot Peppers – My husband loves making his own hot sauce and crushed pepper seasonings.
I also like to experiment with 1–2 “fun” plants each year, like brussel sprouts and peas, to keep things interesting!
🧑🌾 Step 2: Planning for Continuous Harvest
I plant in staggered batches instead of all at once, so I always have something new to harvest. A few examples:
Beans & Zucchini – Plant in two rounds (early spring and mid-summer) to extend the season.
Herbs – Trim regularly to keep them growing and prevent bolting.
🧹 Step 3: Making Sure It’s ADHD-Friendly
Because managing a vegetable garden with ADHD can feel overwhelming if it's too complicated, I keep things simple:
Use filter cloth to cut down on weeding.
Use raised beds and a flat soaker hose to make watering and harvesting easier.
Set reminders on my phone for watering, fertilizing, and harvesting.
Invest in a hose timer to create a regular watering schedule.
Label plants clearly so I don’t forget what I planted where! (Yes, this has happened.)
❄️ Step 4: Storing & Freezing for Year-Round Variety
Since I like variety, I freeze and store veggies so I can mix things up later. Some easy ADHD-friendly gardening tips for storage:
Tomatoes: Roast or blend into sauce, then freeze in portion-sized bags (I like to blanch and peel first).
Peppers: Chop and freeze raw—perfect for soups and stir-fries.
Zucchini: Shred and freeze for quick bread or casseroles, or chunk and freeze for stews.
Green Beans: Blanch for 2 minutes, then freeze.
Herbs: Chop and freeze in ice cube trays with a little olive oil, or make pesto and freeze in cubes!
🌟 Final Thoughts
Whether you’re just starting out or already love getting your hands dirty, planning a vegetable garden with ADHD is totally doable (and actually pretty fun!). Having an ADHD-friendly vegetable garden is all about keeping it fun, simple, and flexible. By planting a mix of hearty producers, staggering my harvests, and freezing extras, I keep my meals interesting without feeling overwhelmed.
Do you garden? What are your favorite ADHD-friendly plants to grow? Let’s share ideas in the comments!
👉 If you're looking for more executive function strategies to make life feel less overwhelming, check out my executive function coaching services!