What to plant in 2025: Cost-saving annuals, vegetables and herbs for gardens and containers

After March coming in like a lion and going out like a lion across much of the country, those with green thumbs are longing to get back into their gardens — and the aisles of garden centres. 

When deciding what to grow for the season ahead, I always ask myself, "What am I not willing to pay an astronomical amount for at the grocery store?" Salad greens are always on my list; I grow lettuces, arugula, kale and mustard greens. Last year, I grew a new-to-me lettuce called Flashy Trout Back and loved it.

Fresh herbs are also something I resent buying at the grocery store, so I always plant a lot of basil, cilantro, dill and thyme. I like the versatility of annual herbs that provide fragrance, texture and food in a garden.

I also like to jazz up my vegetable garden by growing colourful annuals — some of which do double duty as cut flowers in summer arrangements, or as natural dyes.

Below you'll find recommendations for standout varieties that I trialled last year in my garden and some cost-saving plants I'm interested in growing this season.

Basil Everleaf Lemon

I bought a columnar basil plant a few years ago and I've been adding one to my garden each year ever since. Columnar basil grows upright and reaches three to four feet tall! It's slower to flower (if it flowers at all) and you get a lot of it. Last year I trialled a variety called Everleaf Lemon that had a lemon flavour. I could smell it whenever I neared the garden and my harvest was bountiful. Basil likes full sun, but be strategic where you plant it so it doesn't shade out shorter plants. 

Rosemary Rosy Pro

I admit, I'm not a huge fan of rosemary flavour-wise, but I love its ornamental qualities. The Rosy Pro variety has an upright stature, grey-green leaves and is very aromatic. I always recommend growing herbs in ornamental containers because they look and smell so nice. Plus, they can be trimmed in a pinch for a recipe. While it won't survive the winter outside in most parts of Canada, if you've planted it in a pot you can bring it inside for the winter and grow it as a houseplant.

Broccoli Purple Magic

Unique-looking vegetables are always fun to grow. Broccoli Purple Magic is the first purple stem, purple-headed broccoli in the world, at least according to All America Selections, a non-profit that tests new plant varieties for gardeners. It's heat tolerant and said to be more tender than your standard green variety. Though broccoli is planted in full sun, sudden hot days in spring can make brassicas quick to bolt (go to seed). By growing heat-tolerant varieties like this one your broccoli may last a bit longer before flowering. 

Hamberg lettuce

This new lettuce variety is a cross between iceberg and romaine lettuce. That sounds great to me — I love grilling romaine on the barbecue for summer salads. For those with a shadier garden, hamberg will tolerate low-light conditions. Sow seeds in raised beds or even containers (especially if bunnies frequent your garden). Lettuce typically bolts in the heat of summer, which makes the leaves turn bitter, but this variety indicates that you can grow it throughout the season. 

Navy Velour petunia and Petunia Shake Raspberry petunia

I enjoy growing petunias from seed because I can choose the colour combinations for my planters, but you may also find them pre-planted at the garden centre. Petunias tend to be drought tolerant and heat resistant, making them perfect for no-fuss pots.

I trialled Navy Velour last year and the blooms really looked as though they had a soft, fuzzy texture to them. And I loved the dark hue.

This year, I have already started seeds for Petunia Shake Raspberry, a 2025 All-America Selections winner — which means horticulture professionals saw it succeed in trial gardens across North America. I'm looking forward to the pink and yellow tie-dyed-looking blooms!

Coleus FlameThrower Adobo Pink

I'm a bit of a sucker for flashy foliage, so this new coleus variety has been on my radar since I saw a photo of its burgundy and vibrant pink leaves. Coleus is pretty low-maintenance in a pot and it doesn't mind a mix of sun and shade. It works as the star of a container or as a dark and moody accompaniment. 

Cherry Chocolate Cosmos

Cosmos flowers are a must in my raised beds. I love their wispy foliage and the season-long blooms that attract bees and butterflies. I'm hoping to find this new, long-flowering bloomer at my local garden centre, especially since it was a runner up for plant of the year at the Royal Horticultural Society's Chelsea Flower Show. Gardeners say it has a chocolate scent, but I will believe that when I grow it — if I can get my hands on one! Cosmos plants prefer full sun, though they'll tolerate a bit of shade and they need well-draining soil.