Most people cannot live in a house with enough sunlight to grow a vegetable garden. I have good news for all garden lovers, and you can make up to 10 vegetables to grow without sunlight. As we learned in school, sunlight is essential for the healthy growth of plants and animals, and that’s only true to a certain extent. That’s because many vegetables grow just as well and sometimes better in the shade.

Vegetables that can be grown without light generally fall into these two categories;

Seedlings and sprouts that grow from seeds, beans, rhizomes or tubers. These do not require light as they use the energy stored within them—for example, green beans, ginger sprouts, and asparagus.

Mushrooms do not need light, and a little light can even destroy the crop.

Saprophytic tubercles. Rare and difficult to cultivate, they usually come from rare wild orchids like Eulophia and Gastrodea.

Holoparasite These are rarely used as vegetables and are never cultivated, considered herbs or traditional medicine. Although some are edible, care must be taken when consuming them—for example, broomrape and squawroot.

Green vegetables

Leafy greens are vegetables that grow in the shade. The only difference between leaves growing with and without sunlight is the thickness of the leaves. Greens grown in the shade are a little thinner but taste just as good. Below are examples of leafy vegetables that can be grown without sunlight.

• Lettuce
• in the woods
• chard
• Spinach
• root vegetables

Since the roots grow underground, it doesn’t need a lot of sunlight. Indirect sunlight for 4-6 hours daily will be enough for its growth. Below are examples of tubers that grow without sunlight.

• Carrot
• Radish
• Daddy
• Beet
• The cross

Cruciferous vegetables grow best without a lot of sunlight. They are grown in winter for this reason and are considered healthy. Always grow cruciferous vegetables in deep pots. They will grow healthy but not compatible with plants as they need additional space to grow. Below are examples of cruciferous vegetables that grow without sunlight.

• Cabbage
• mala

Since the primary energy source for growing fruits and vegetables is prohibited, planting vegetables without sunlight requires soil preparation and good fertilizers, preferably organic

Tips for preparing the soil for growing vegetables without sunlight.

Use fresh soil to plant indoor vegetable plants.

Mix the fertilizer into the soil before planting. The use of organic fertilizers is recommended.

Have a soil test kit to test soil quality before planting.

Avoid over-watering indoor vegetable plants. Excessive watering and lack of sunlight can cause plant disease.