Greens of any kinds - salad, mesclun, mustard, chard, spinach, etc. And any of the brassicas or cole crops - cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower, sprouts, kale, etc. Both can be grown virtually year round in this climate, although even the very mild heat of our midsummer is not much to their liking and they will tend to bolt. Potatoes also provide a lot of bang for the real estate buck. And most other root crops do well but tend to require a lot of space to provide a sufficient harvest. Peas, beans and other legumes produce well but take up too much space, as do squashes - can anyone argue with the success of zucchinis in this area? But I wouldn't discount the yields from some of the more heating loving veggies, either. If you grow them in containers, provide them with some reflected heat and protect from cold, tomatoes, peppers and eggplants can produce very well, provided you select for a short harvest season.

What I wouldn't waste time and space on is corn. Takes up far too much room for the return, doesn't do as well as one would hope and the dang squirrels get to it and strip the ears just before you're ready to pick!! Besides, it is so inexpensive to purchase fresh in season from eastern WA and even more local farms.

If you grow your tomatoes vertically you'll get as much nourishment from the space as anything else I can think of.

Pole beans also provide a lot for the amount of space they use. The purple ones are good for damp and cold climates.

Tomatoes will do very well here. Just give them a sunny spot and some fertilizer and you'll have more than you can eat.

Spinach never performs well for me. Collards and Kale do better and will overwinter. Turnips left in the ground will make early greens and the flowering buds can be eaten like broccoli.

I get very good yields from cucumbers, squash, tomatoes, and pole beans.

Peas do awesome west of the Cascades. Start them ASAP. Put up a trellis or chicken wire on the north side of your garden and start some pole peas.

Most cooler weather crops do well here, but make sure to water correctly and not plant too late. Hot weather crops do well too, but you need to start some of them indoors such as chile peppers and tomatoes. The long hours of summer sunshine can make up for the cooler nights.

My tomatoes do very well here in Portland. I always have enough to can for the entire winter.

Give them a shot, you may be surprised.

I do well with lots of the "hot weather" veges. Tomaotes, squash, beans, cukes, pumpkin, basil, hot weather leafy greens, taters, herbs, other. Timing is everything.

And then there are all the cold weather crops that do even better here. Peas, collards, edible kale, lettuce, garlic, leeks, onions, herbs---almost 4 season for some of these.

Other root veges (carrots, beets)--not so much. Dill has never worked for me.

I think your local climate - as in very local, like where you are on the block, or how sheltered your spot is - makes a huge difference.

I'm glad to hear that some people can grow tomatoes here, but I sure can't on Vashon Island - in my cool garden I get about 2 pickings and then they rot in the rain. And I really pamper them! This year I'm going to try to keep them covered after years of disappointment. The zukes on the other hand...