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When to plant · 8 crops · 51 states · 2027 season

When to plant, state by state

Every sauce crop on the site, dated for every state: when to start seeds indoors and when to plant out, counted from the median last spring frost across each state's ZIP codes. NOAA 1991–2020 station normals, run through the same engine as the Plan Builder. 399 state pages, each with a city-by-city table.

Tomatoes51 states · 2 cultivarsSix weeks indoors at 75–85 °F soil, then transplant a week after the last frost and cage at transplant.Peppers51 states · 5 cultivarsEight weeks indoors on a heat mat (ten for habanero), then transplant one to two weeks after the last frost, once nights hold above 50 °F.Tomatillos51 states · 1 cultivarSix weeks indoors, transplant after the last frost, and give each plant 30 inches and a large cage.Basil51 states · 1 cultivarBasil is damaged below about 50 °F, well before frost: transplant two weeks after the last frost, not on it.Onions42 states · 1 cultivarTwelve weeks indoors, the earliest sowing on the calendar, then transplant about four weeks before the last frost.Cilantro51 states · 1 cultivarDirect sow in 60–70 °F soil, a short row every two weeks from four weeks before the last frost until the heat arrives, then again from late summer.Carrots51 states · 1 cultivarDirect sow two weeks before the last frost and keep the top half-inch of soil damp for the 14–21 days it takes to germinate.Mustard Greens51 states · 1 cultivarDirect sow as soon as the soil can be worked in spring, and again in late summer for fall. Seed germinates fastest at 55–65 °F and may stall above 80 °F.

Planting date by state

Transplant date for each crop's lead cultivar (direct-sow date for cilantro, carrots and mustard), statewide median. Click a date for that state's full page.

StateTomatoesPeppersTomatillosBasilOnionsCilantroCarrotsMustard Greens
AlabamaMar 28Mar 28Mar 28Apr 4—Mar 7Mar 7Mar 21
AlaskaMay 25May 25May 25Jun 1Apr 20May 4May 4May 18
ArizonaFeb 25Feb 25Feb 25Mar 4—Feb 4Feb 4Feb 18
ArkansasApr 4Apr 4Apr 4Apr 11Feb 28Mar 14Mar 14Mar 28
CaliforniaFeb 14Feb 14Feb 14Feb 21Jan 10Jan 24Jan 24Feb 7
ColoradoMay 14May 14May 14May 21Apr 9Apr 23Apr 23May 7
ConnecticutApr 27Apr 27Apr 27May 4Mar 23Apr 6Apr 6Apr 20
DelawareApr 14Apr 14Apr 14Apr 21Mar 10Mar 24Mar 24Apr 7
District of ColumbiaMar 31Mar 31Mar 31Apr 7Feb 24Mar 10Mar 10Mar 24
FloridaFeb 6Feb 6Feb 6Feb 13—Jan 16Jan 16Jan 30
GeorgiaMar 30Mar 30Mar 30Apr 6—Mar 9Mar 9Mar 23
HawaiiJan 22Jan 22Jan 22Jan 29—Jan 1Jan 1Jan 15
IdahoMay 21May 21May 21May 28Apr 16Apr 30Apr 30May 14
IllinoisApr 24Apr 24Apr 24May 1Mar 20Apr 3Apr 3Apr 17
IndianaApr 29Apr 29Apr 29May 6Mar 25Apr 8Apr 8Apr 22
IowaMay 5May 5May 5May 12Mar 31Apr 14Apr 14Apr 28
KansasApr 24Apr 24Apr 24May 1Mar 20Apr 3Apr 3Apr 17
KentuckyApr 22Apr 22Apr 22Apr 29Mar 18Apr 1Apr 1Apr 15
LouisianaMar 7Mar 7Mar 7Mar 14—Feb 14Feb 14Feb 28
MaineMay 13May 13May 13May 20Apr 8Apr 22Apr 22May 6
MarylandApr 12Apr 12Apr 12Apr 19Mar 8Mar 22Mar 22Apr 5
MassachusettsMay 4May 4May 4May 11Mar 30Apr 13Apr 13Apr 27
MichiganMay 10May 10May 10May 17Apr 5Apr 19Apr 19May 3
MinnesotaMay 11May 11May 11May 18Apr 6Apr 20Apr 20May 4
MississippiMar 23Mar 23Mar 23Mar 30—Mar 2Mar 2Mar 16
MissouriApr 18Apr 18Apr 18Apr 25Mar 14Mar 28Mar 28Apr 11
MontanaMay 27May 27May 27Jun 3Apr 22May 6May 6May 20
NebraskaMay 4May 4May 4May 11Mar 30Apr 13Apr 13Apr 27
NevadaApr 22Apr 22Apr 22Apr 29Mar 18Apr 1Apr 1Apr 15
New HampshireMay 15May 15May 15May 22Apr 10Apr 24Apr 24May 8
New JerseyApr 22Apr 22Apr 22Apr 29Mar 18Apr 1Apr 1Apr 15
New MexicoMay 9May 9May 9May 16Apr 4Apr 18Apr 18May 2
New YorkMay 8May 8May 8May 15Apr 3Apr 17Apr 17May 1
North CarolinaApr 7Apr 7Apr 7Apr 14Mar 3Mar 17Mar 17Mar 31
North DakotaMay 19May 19May 19May 26Apr 14Apr 28Apr 28May 12
OhioMay 1May 1May 1May 8Mar 27Apr 10Apr 10Apr 24
OklahomaApr 11Apr 11Apr 11Apr 18Mar 7Mar 21Mar 21Apr 4
OregonApr 18Apr 18Apr 18Apr 25Mar 14Mar 28Mar 28Apr 11
PennsylvaniaMay 4May 4May 4May 11Mar 30Apr 13Apr 13Apr 27
Rhode IslandApr 18Apr 18Apr 18Apr 25Mar 14Mar 28Mar 28Apr 11
South CarolinaMar 31Mar 31Mar 31Apr 7—Mar 10Mar 10Mar 24
South DakotaMay 13May 13May 13May 20Apr 8Apr 22Apr 22May 6
TennesseeApr 13Apr 13Apr 13Apr 20Mar 9Mar 23Mar 23Apr 6
TexasMar 17Mar 17Mar 17Mar 24—Feb 24Feb 24Mar 10
UtahMay 12May 12May 12May 19Apr 7Apr 21Apr 21May 5
VermontMay 20May 20May 20May 27Apr 15Apr 29Apr 29May 13
VirginiaApr 18Apr 18Apr 18Apr 25Mar 14Mar 28Mar 28Apr 11
WashingtonApr 21Apr 21Apr 21Apr 28Mar 17Mar 31Mar 31Apr 14
West VirginiaApr 30Apr 30Apr 30May 7Mar 26Apr 9Apr 9Apr 23
WisconsinMay 11May 11May 11May 18Apr 6Apr 20Apr 20May 4
WyomingMay 28May 28May 28Jun 4Apr 23May 7May 7May 21

A dash under onions: every listed city in that state sits below 36° N, too far south for a long-day onion to bulb. Garlic is not here because it goes in on one fixed autumn date everywhere; see the garlic guide. For your own ZIP code, use the Plan Builder or frost dates by city.