Best vegetables for full sun

Put a tomato in a shady corner and you get leaves, not fruit. Most vegetables are sun-hungry, but not equally, and "full sun" means a real number of hours, not a vibe. Here is what to plant where, and how to know what your bed actually gets.

How much sun do vegetables need?

Vegetables sort into three rough bands. Full sun is six or more hours of direct light a day, what fruiting crops need to set and ripen. Partial sun or partial shade is three to six hours, fine for leafy greens and roots. Full shade, under three hours, is too dim for almost any edible. The catch is that a bed's hours change through the season as the sun climbs and as trees leaf out, so the spot that bakes in July can be shaded in May.

The best vegetables for a full-sun bed

These are the sun-lovers. Give them the brightest, most open bed you have, six-plus hours of direct light.

• TomatoSolanum lycopersicum
  Needs long, hot days to set and ripen fruit.
• Sweet PepperCapsicum annuum
  Loves heat and full sun for a heavy set.
• Chili PepperCapsicum frutescens
  The more sun and heat, the hotter the fruit.
• CucumberCucumis sativus
  A thirsty vine that crops hard in full sun.
• ZucchiniCucurbita pepo
  Pumps out fruit given sun, warmth, and water.
• StrawberryFragaria ananassa
  Sweeter and more productive in full sun.
• Green BeanPhaseolus vulgaris
  Reliable cropper in a warm, sunny bed.
• BasilOcimum basilicum
  A sun-and-heat herb that pairs with tomatoes.
• CarrotDaucus carota
  Roots best in full sun and loose soil.

Vegetables that tolerate partial shade

Leafy greens and roots crop on three to six hours of sun, and many actually prefer some afternoon shade in summer, it stops them bolting:

• Lettuce, spinach, and chard
• Kale and other leafy brassicas
• Peas and radishes
• Shade-friendly herbs like mint, parsley, and cilantro

Watch out for frost, not just shade

Sun is only half the story outdoors. The full-sun crops above, tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers, basil, are warm-season and frost-tender: a late or early frost will kill them, so they belong outside only between your last and first frost dates. Cool-season crops like kale, peas, and spinach handle a light frost and can go out earlier and stay later. Plant Compass flags the frost-tender ones in its catalog, so you can plan the bed by both sun and temperature.

Frequently asked

How much sun do vegetables need?

Most fruiting vegetables, like tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers, and squash, need full sun: six or more hours of direct light a day. Leafy greens and roots, like lettuce, spinach, kale, and carrots, get by on three to six hours, so they tolerate a partly shaded bed.

What vegetables grow in shade or partial sun?

Leafy greens (lettuce, spinach, kale, chard), peas, radishes, and many herbs (mint, parsley, cilantro) crop well in three to six hours of sun. They bolt less in cooler, shadier spots, which helps in high summer.

How do I know if my garden bed gets enough sun?

Watch the bed across a full day, or let Plant Compass do it. It computes the real sun path for your bed's location and season and rates each crop thrive, cope, or avoid, accounting for the fences, trees, and buildings that shade it.

When is it too cold to plant vegetables out?

Warm-season crops like tomatoes, peppers, and basil are frost-tender and go out after your last frost. Cool-season crops like kale, peas, and spinach shrug off a light frost. Plant Compass flags the frost-tender ones so you don't plant them out too early.

See also: Best plants for south-facing windows for sun-lovers indoors, and best plants for north-facing windows for the shadiest spots.