---
title: 'If I Could Only Plant One Thing in My Garden'
source: 'https://youtube.com/watch?v=6jLkkYHv5Hw'
video_id: '6jLkkYHv5Hw'
date: 2026-08-09
duration_sec: 71
---

# If I Could Only Plant One Thing in My Garden

> Source: [If I Could Only Plant One Thing in My Garden](https://youtube.com/watch?v=6jLkkYHv5Hw)

## Summary

The video argues that if you could only grow one thing in your garden, the most cost-effective choice is the allium family—onions and garlic. These plants are not heavy feeders, can be densely planted, require minimal upkeep, and provide food at every stage of growth, from early greens to cured bulbs for winter storage.

### Key Points

- **The Question** [00:03] — The creator is often asked what single crop they would grow if limited to one, ruling out potatoes, tomatoes, and cucumbers.
- **Alliums as the Answer** [00:16] — Alliums (onions and garlic) are identified as the most cost-effective plant, because they are not heavy feeders and can be packed densely into a single bed.
- **Dense Planting** [00:29] — The creator plants nine garlic cloves per square foot and nine onions per square foot, maximizing yield in a small space.
- **Low Maintenance and Continuous Harvest** [00:43] — Alliums require no pruning or upkeep, and can be harvested at any point in their growth cycle, providing food within weeks by picking the tops of onion plants.
- **Garlic Scapes and Storage** [00:55] — Mature garlic plants produce delicious garlic scapes. After harvest, the bulbs can be cured for a few weeks, providing food through the winter months.

### Conclusion

Growing alliums like onions and garlic is a highly efficient, low-maintenance strategy that yields food continuously and stores well, making them the ideal single crop for a productive garden.

## Transcript

grow. All right, so one question I get all of the time is, if I could only grow one thing, what would it be? >> It certainly would not be potatoes. >> It definitely wouldn't be tomatoes. It wouldn't be cucumbers. It wouldn't be
>> The most cost effective plant I have found by far are aliums. >> I'm talking about your onions and your garlic. And here's why. First off, these plants aren't heavy feeders, so you can absolutely pack them into one bed. I
planted nine garlic cloves per square foot and nine onions per square foot. for some additional greens. And what I love most about the alium family is and they don't really need any pruning or upkeep. You can also harvest and eat
aliums at any point in their growing cycle, meaning food within weeks of that you can pick from the top of the onion plants that you would ever need. And of course, you get those delicious garlic scapes when the garlic plants
have matured, I can harvest them all and cure them for a few weeks. And now I've winter. So, I've been eating off this same crop for the past few months. And now I have all of this food for the next few months.