When to plant · 4 cities · zones 4b–5b
When to plant cilantro in Montana
Direct sow cilantro around May 6 — the Montana statewide median, counted from a last spring frost of May 20 across 332 ZIP codes and 181 NOAA stations.
The rule: Direct 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.
Montana cilantro, by step
Statewide median last frost May 20, first fall frost Sep 22, 2027 season. Each cultivar's own indoor lead time and days to maturity, same engine as the Plan Builder.
| Cultivar | Start indoors | Sow | First harvest | Days |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CilantroSlow Bolt (Coriandrum sativum) | Direct sow | May 6 | Jun 20 | 45 from sow |
Tight means first harvest lands within two weeks of the median first fall frost. Statewide dates are the ZIP-weighted median of every NOAA 1991–2020 station Montana's ZIP codes resolve to; 37 of 369 ZIPs have no datable freeze and are left out.
Cilantro in Montana, city by city
Cilantro, scheduled from each city's nearest NOAA station — the same dates as its frost page.
| City | Last frost | Sow | First harvest |
|---|---|---|---|
| Billingszone 5a | May 5 | Apr 21 | Jun 5 |
| Missoulazone 5b | May 10 | Apr 26 | Jun 10 |
| Great Fallszone 4b | May 6 | Apr 22 | Jun 6 |
| Bozemanzone 5a | May 23 | May 9 | Jun 23 |
What these cilantro become
What Montana cilantro need
Cilantro / Coriander Seed
Bolts in a heartbeat and there is nothing you can do about it — so you succession-sow instead of fighting it. Non-negotiable in salsa verde and zhoug.
Organic Seed Starter Potting MixMust have
Seed-starting mix is not potting soil with a nicer label — it is finer, lighter, and low in nutrients on purpose, because a seedling's first roots want air and moisture, not fertiliser.
Ocean Forest Potting SoilMust have
Pre-charged with enough nutrition to carry a transplant for its first month without feeding, which is exactly the window when most container plants stall.
5-Gallon Fabric Grow Bags, 5-Pack
Fabric pots air-prune roots and drain faster than a plastic pot can, which is the entire reason container tomatoes fail. Five gallons is the honest minimum for a pepper; a tomato wants ten.
AG-30 Frost Protection Row Cover
AG-30 buys roughly 6 °F of frost protection while passing about 70% of light — enough to carry a crop through an early-October cold snap that would otherwise end your season two weeks short.
6" Micro-Tip Pruning SnipsMust have
Ninety percent of sauce-garden cutting is snipping a pepper stem or a basil node, and a fine-tipped snip does it better than any pruner. Pulling peppers by hand tears the branch.
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Cilantro in Montana: questions
When should I plant cilantro in Montana?
Direct sow around May 6 at the statewide median; across the state that date runs from Apr 25 in the warmest tenth of Montana's ZIP codes to May 23 in the coldest. To cut the freeze risk to one year in ten, count from Jun 4 instead of the median last frost. Use the city table for your own town.
When is the last frost in Montana?
The ZIP-weighted median of NOAA 1991–2020 station medians is May 20. In the warmest tenth of Montana's ZIP codes the median last frost falls on or before May 9; in the coldest tenth, on or after Jun 6.
When will Montana cilantro be ready to harvest?
Cilantro planted on the statewide date is ready around Jun 20: 45 days from sow.
More for Montana
- When to plant tomatoes
- When to plant peppers
- When to plant tomatillos
- When to plant basil
- When to plant onions
- When to plant carrots
- When to plant mustard greens
Cilantro in every state → · Montana frost dates → · How frost-date math works →