What can we plant as total beginners?

[hairycabbage]

Dd is 7 and wants to start planting some stuff in our garden. We don't have any beds or planters so it would have to be in pots. Any top tips for simple beginner friendly planting, preferably with reasonably fast results?!
Thanks

Are you thinking of growing from seed, or buying plants to put in the pots? The latter is obviously a lot quicker to see results!

Flower seeds take about 12 weeks to come up, ( things like marigold , nigella, California poppies) so it’s a bit late in the season for them.
But you could plant things like lambs lettuce and radish, which might be fun for him. Google autumn salad for seeds that you can plant in August. They will appear im about 6 weeks.

Herbs are easy in pots and Thyme will grow a lovely flower if you leave it. Lobelia also grow fabulously in pots and look lovely.

Spinach or rocket seeds do great in pots and they sprout in about a week so quick results. Then great to pick and eat!

I was literally going to have this conversation with my Mum today as I'd like to start some things in pots!! Any more ideas⁉️

Great ideas

A little off topic OP, but you should get her a little fairy garden set.

My daughter is 8 now, and that's what really sparked her interest in gardening (at around 5)
7 is the perfect age for it

You get grass seed in the set, so you just need some soil. It's the perfect time of year for it, for her to watch it each day and see the grass grow.

For your pots, I'm lazy but I'd just go to a garden centre and buy what you like. Bedding plants will be suitable for pots.
I've pretty much stopped buying annuals (Dahlia, begonia etc) and prefer perennial- they'll come back each year.

Also, she could plant some spring bulbs at the end of September? Great excitement next spring, seeing what comes up

Thanks all. We eat a mountain of salad leaves so that sounds like a good option to start with. Off to browse the garden centre this afternoon!

Nasturtium planted now will produce flowers this year. The seeds are nice and big so easy for her to handle. You can eat the leaves and the flowers.

Also walflower seeds planted in a pot now will flower next spring

Radish are quick and easy to grow, and taste completely different when home grown.

Personally I steer clear of any brassicas eg radishes as they get mullered by flea beetle and white fly and cabbage white caterpillar at the moment. What looks great can be ravaged in a couple of days.

Cut and come again lettuces, if there are any end of season cherry tomatoes left get a couple of those, and sow spinach seds now for autumn and winter harvests, but just buy some bedding plants and let her plant them where she wants, also maybe get a dwarf cherry tree for next year? Nothing like sweet cherries straight off the tree for a reward for all that patience.

I was going to suggest nasturtiums too. I've got some old hanging baskets which I've got hanging on the side fence which my kitchen window overlooks, cheap splash of colour and a few leaves and flowers pep up a salad.

Definitely do a pot of bulbs in sept/Oct, you can put a few different types in layers.