74 Cool Weather Plants To Grow For Years Of Free Food – Zones 4-8

I’m a huge advocate for working smarter not harder. That’s why these 74 cool weather plants to grow for years of free food ( zones 4-8 ) will drastically cut down your work growing food, AND put money in your pocket which you would otherwise have to spend at the grocery store!

Growing food makes you money. It’s as simple as that. Why? Because with just a few seeds you can create a fruit bearing plant that (when treated well) will provide you with free food for years to come! And with these 74 cool weather plants to grow for years of free food (zones 4-8) you won’t have to worry about feeding yourself if you fall on hard times, and you’ll be making money because you’re saving money!

That is smart money management.

Annual vs. Perennial vs. Biennial

There are many ways a plant goes through its life cycle. Three of the main ways are these;

• annual
• perennial
• biennial

Annuals

Annuals are plants that in general have a one year or one season life cycle. They are planted, grow to maturity, bear fruit, produce seeds, and then die.

Some popular annual plants are:

• peas
• tomatoes
• marigolds
• corn

Perennial

A perennial plant is a plant that lives more than two years. These plants out live annuals and biennials and if they are a fruit bearing type, will produce over and over for several years. Some perennials are known to out live the person who planted them!

Examples of perennials are:

• rhubarb
• chives
• apple trees
• mint

Biennial

Biennial plants are those that live for two full seasons before dying (years may increase depending on the plant and climate). Their first season they will grow and stabilize, then go dormant during their off season which is usually cold and can include freezing temps. Then the plant resumes growing and eventually bares fruit or flowers, before dying off.

Commonly known biennials are:

• parsley
• black eyed susan
• fennel
• carrots

Cool weather plants to grow for years of free food

The plants I’ve chosen to highlight do their very best between zones 4-8, BUT I included the zone range for each one so that you can see just what these plants can do. Some of them are pretty incredible and can grow as low as zone 1 or 2!

I didn’t include anything whos zone starts higher than 4 because zone 4 is my starting point for these plants, so if you notice plants missing it may be because they aren’t zone 4 friendly!

Printable version of this list

If you’d like to have the beautiful printable version of “76 Cool Weather Plants To Grow For Years Of Free Food – Zones 4-8” to keep in your gardening records or pin up in the potting shed make sure you download it at the bottom of the page!

This is a mobile friendly list so I’ve kept it in a single category so that readers on mobile can read it with ease. Enjoy!

1. Asparagus – zone 2-11
2. Apple tree varieties – zone 1-8
3. Wild raspberry – zone 2-10
4. Rhubarb – zone 2-8
5. Echinacea – zone 2-9
6. Strawberry – zone 3-10
7. Chive – zone 3-11
8. Wild leek/ramp – zone 3-8
9. Fiddlehead – zone 2-8
10. Sage – zone 4-9
11. Thyme – zone 4-9
12. Oregano – zone 4-9
13. Mint – zone 3-8
14. English lavender – zone 4-8
15. Chamomile zone – 3-9
16. Lovege – zone 4-8
17. Marjoram – zone 4-8
18. French tarragon – zone 3-8
19. Lemon bomb – zone 4-9
20. Yarrow – zone 3-9
21. Garlic Chives – zone 4-9
22. Caucasian spinach – zone 3-9
23. Korean pine – zone 1+
24. Sour cherry – zone 2+
25. Hawthorn – zone 1+
26. Bee Bomb – zone 4-9
27. Hyssop – zone 3-8
28. Anise – zone 3-8
29. Pear tree – zone 4-8
30. Horseradish – zone 3-9
31. Groundnut – zone 3-10
32. Jerusalem artichoke – zone 3-8
33. Gooseberry – zone 3-9
34. Watercress – zone 2-10
35. Wild garlic – zone 3-8
36. Haskop – zone 1-10
37. Egyption walking onion – zone 3-10
38. Good king henry – zone 3-9
39. Day lilly – zone 4-9
40. Radicchio – zone 3-9
41. Plum tree varieties – zone 2+
42. Sea beet – zone 4-8
43. Turkish rocket – zone 4-8
44. Blueberry – zone 4-10
45. Blackberry – zone 3-9
46. Serviceberry – zone 2-9
47. Honeyberry – zone 2-9
48. Goji berry – zone 3-10
49. Grape – zone 2-10
50. English walnut – zone 4+
51. Northern pecan – zone 4+
52. Saskatoon berry – zone 1+
53. Hazelnut tree – zone 3+
54. Black walnut – zone 4-9
55. Chinese chestnut – zone 4+
56. American chestnut – zone 4-8
57. Butternut – zone 3+
58. Aronia – zone 3+
59. Sea buckhorn – zone 2+
60. Oak tree – zone 3-9
61. Elderberry – zone 3+
62. Cornelian cherry – zone 4+
63. Manchurian apricot – zone 3+
64. Highbush cranberry – zone 2-7
65. Cranberry – zone 3-9
66. Currants – zone 2-9
67. Lingonberry – zone 2-6
68. Cloudberry – zone 2-5
69. Hardy kiwi – zone 3-7
70. Nannyberry – zone 2-8
71. Shiitake mushroom – zone 3-8
72. Oyster mushroom – zone 3-8
73. Buartnut tree – zone 4-8
74. Sorrel – zone 4-9

Don’t forget to download the beautiful printable below!

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