Best Time Plant Vegetable Garden -
Planting Times for Garden Vegetables

The best time to plant a vegetable garden depends on the vegetables you're growing and will vary based on your region-specific weather…

• Weather
• Plant-specific requirements (planting times for garden vegetables)

Best Time Plant Vegetable Garden - Weather

Every vegetable has unique needs. Some are hardier and may actually grow better after being exposed to a hard frost or two (“hardy”), some don’t like but will survive light frosts (“half hardy”) and others must avoid frost at all costs (“warm season”). And while most vegetables will take as much sun as you can give them (“full sun” – at least 6 hours), others like or will tolerate partial shade.

To get even more specific, each plant has a desired range of soil temperatures that it prefers for germination (even though germination may occur outside of those ranges). Generally speaking, the higher the soil temperature within the plant-specific desired range, the faster the plant will germinate.

Inexpensive soil thermometers can be purchased to determine when your soil’s ready for each plant, and insulation in the form of black plastic mulch or landscaping fabric can get it there a few weeks ahead of time.

When planning your vegetable garden layout and the planting time of each crop, don’t forget to take the companion planting charts and your annual vegetable crop rotation into account.

Planting Times for Garden Vegetables (Complete List of Veggies)

The following chart sums up the weather requirements for each vegetable type. Follow the links for more vegetable-specific information…

Vegetable	Amount of Sun	Cold Tolerance*	Germination Soil Temperature
Artichokes	Full sun	Warm season	70 to 80 degrees F (21 to 27 degrees C)
Asparagus	Full sun	Hardy	75 to 85 degrees F (24 to 29.4 degrees C)
Beans, Bush	Full sun	Warm season	70 to 85 degrees F (21 to 29 degrees C)
Beans, Green	Full sun	Warm season	70 to 85 degrees F (21 to 29 degrees C)
Beans, Lima	Full sun	Warm season	65 to 75 degrees F (18.3 to 23.8 degrees C)
Beans, Pole	Full sun	Warm season	70 to 80 degrees F (21.1 to 26.6 degrees C)
Bean Sprouts	No sun needed	n/a	n/a
Beets	Full sun	Very hardy to hardy	50 to 85 degrees F (10 to 29 degrees C)
Broccoli	Full sun	Hardy	65 to 80 degrees F (18.3 to 26.7 degrees C)
Back to top of list for best time plant vegetable garden
Brussels Sprouts	Partial shade	Half hardy	65 to 85 degrees F (18 to 29 degrees C)
Butternut Squash	Full sun	Warm season	70 to 95 degrees F (17 degrees C)
Cabbage	Full sun	Hardy	72 to 79 degrees F (22.2 to 26.1 degrees C)
Cantaloupe	Full sun	Warm Season	75 to 95 degrees F (23.9 to 35.0 C)
Carrots	Full sun	Hardy	45 to 85 degrees F (7.2 to 29.4 degrees C)
Cauliflower	Full sun	Half hardy	75 to 80 degrees F (24 to 27 degrees C)
Celery	Full sun or partial shade	Half hardy	70 to 75 degrees F (21.1 to 23.8 degrees C)
Corn	Full sun	Warm season	60 to 85 degrees F (15.6 to 29 degrees C)
Cucumbers	Full sun	Warm season	At least 70 degrees F (21.1 C), preferably 80 to 95 F (27 to 35 C)
Eggplant	Full sun	Warm season	80 to 90 degrees F (26.6 to 32.2 degrees C)
Garlic	Full sun	Hardy	n/a (typically grown from cloves)
Hops	Full sun to partial shade (full sun is preferred)	Half hardy	70 to 75.2 degrees F (21-24 degrees C)
Horseradish	Full sun to partial shade	Hardy	n/a (typically grown from root cuttings)
Kale Plant	Full sun to partial shade (prefers full sun)	Hardy	45 to 85 degrees F (7.2 to 29.4 degrees C)
Leeks	Full sun	Hardy	70 to 75 degrees F (21.1 to 23.9 degrees C)
Lettuce	Full sun	Half hardy	40 to 60 degrees F (4 to 16 degrees C)
Okra	Full sun	Warm season	70 to 95 degrees F (21 to 35 degrees C)
Onions	Full sun	Hardy	70 to 85 degrees F (21.1 to 29 degrees C)
Parsnip	Partial shade	Hardy	50 to 70 degrees F (10 to 21.1 degrees C)
Back to top of list for best time plant vegetable garden
Peanuts	Full sun	Warm season	60 to 70 degrees F (15.5 to 21.1 degrees C)
Peas	Full sun	Hardy	40 to 75 degrees F (4.4 to 23.8 degrees C)
Peppers, Bell	Full sun	Warm season	70 to 95 degrees F (21 to 35 C), but try to keep it above 80 F (27 C) for faster germination
Peppers, Hot	Full sun	Warm season	70 to 95 degrees F (21 to 35 C), but try to keep it above 80 F (27 C) for faster germination
Potatoes	Full sun	Half hardy	45 to 50 degrees F (7.22 to 10 degrees C)
Back to top of list for best time plant vegetable garden
Pumpkins	Full sun	Half hardy	70 to 90 degrees F (21.1to 32.2 degrees C)
Pumpkins, Giant	Full sun	Warm season	70 to 90 degrees F (21.1to 32.2 degrees C)
Radishes	Full sun	Half hardy	45 to 90 degrees F (7.2 to 32.2 degrees C)
Rhubarb	Full sun to partial shade	Hardy	45 to 65 degrees F (7.2 to 18.3 degrees C)
Shallots	Full sun to partial shade	Hardy	50 to 95 degrees F (10 to 35 degrees C)
Soybeans	Full sun	Warm season	60 to 70 degrees F (15.6 to 21.1 degrees C)
Back to top of list for best time plant vegetable garden
Spinach	Full sun	Hardy	70 to 75 degrees F (21.1 to 23.8 degrees C)
Squash, Summer	Full sun	Warm season	70 to 95 degrees F (17 degrees C)
Squash, Winter	Full sun	Warm season	70 to 95 degrees F (17 degrees C)
Strawberry Plants	Full sun	Hardy	40 to 60 degrees F (4.44 to 15.5 degrees C)
Sweet Corn	Full sun	Warm season	60 to 85 degrees F (15.5 to 29 degrees C)
Sweet Potatoes	Full sun	Warm season	60 to 85 degrees F (15.5 to 29 degrees C)
Back to top of list for best time plant vegetable garden
Swiss Chard	Full sun	Hardy	50 to 85 degrees F (10 to 29.4 degrees C)
Tomato Plants	Full sun	Warm season	70 to 80 degrees F (21 to 27 degrees C)
Turnips	Full sun to partial shade	Hardy	60 to 105 degrees F (15.6 to 40.6 degrees C)
Watermelon	Full sun	Warm season	60 degrees F minimum (15.5 degrees C)
Zucchini	Full sun	Warm season	70 to 95 degrees F (21.1 to 35 degrees C)
*Very Hardy to Hardy - Will survive hard frosts and can be planted 2 to 3 weeks before the average date of the last 32 degree F (0 degree C) temperature in spring. Half Hardy – Will survive light frosts. Seeds germinate at low soil temperatures and can be planted 2 weeks before the average date of the last 32 degree F (0 degree C) temperature in spring. Warm Season – Will not survive frost and their seeds will not germinate in cold soil. Plant them at about the average date of the last 32 degree F (0 degree C) temperature in spring

Was this page helpful?  If so, please tell your friends about it with a Facebook like or via Twitter, Pinterest, email or good old fashioned word of mouth. Thank you for supporting our efforts!

For additional research, search for your topic...

Also see...