Spring Vegetable Garden:
Your Spring Garden Planting Guide

A spring vegetable garden starts earlier than most people think. Peas, spinach, lettuce, and radishes can go in the ground weeks before your last frost, while tomatoes and peppers have to wait for warm soil.

This spring garden planting guide shows you what to plant first, and exactly when to plant it in your zone, with a free printable spring planting chart and checklist to keep you on track.

Get your spring garden to-do list

Enter your zip code and our free monthly vegetable garden checklist shows every spring chore, timed to your own frost dates.

Make My Checklist

When to Plant Your Spring Vegetable Garden by Zone

Your last spring frost date is the clock your spring vegetable garden runs on. Cool-season vegetables go in before it. Warm-season vegetables go in after it.

Find your zone in the table below. Don't know your zone? Our free Zone Finder looks it up from your zip code.

Your zone	Average last spring frost	Sow peas, spinach, lettuce, radishes	Plant potatoes, onion sets, beets, carrots	Plant tomatoes, peppers, beans, squash
Zone 3	Late May	Mid April to early May	Early to late May	Early to late June
Zone 4	Mid May	Early to late April	Late April to mid May	Late May to early June
Zone 5	Early May	Mid March to mid April	Early April to early May	Early to late May
Zone 6	Mid to late April	Early to late March	Late March to mid April	Late April to mid May
Zone 7	Early April	Late February to mid March	Mid March to early April	Mid April to early May
Zone 8	Mid to late March	Early to late February	Late February to mid March	Late March to mid April
Zone 9	Mid February to early March	Early January to early February	Late January to late February	Late February to late March

These are average dates. Frost can come a week or two earlier or later in any year, so watch your local forecast. In zones 10 and 11, where frost is rare, plant cool-season crops in fall and winter instead, and use spring for heat-loving crops.

For a planting date for every vegetable, try our Personal Planting Calendar. It works out the dates from your zip code.

Vegetable Garden Zone Finder: know your USDA hardiness zone, plan the right planting time, and grow with confidence — Click to find your planting zone and frost dates with our free Zone Finder.

What to Plant First in a Spring Vegetable Garden

Spring? The name can be a bit misleading. Vegetables best suited to the spring season are often planted as early as February, depending on your zone. They fall into four groups.

Very hardy: plant 4 to 6 weeks before your last frost

Pea plants growing along a trellis in cool spring weather — Peas love cool spring weather.

Peas, spinach, lettuce, radishes, onion sets, kale, turnips, and asparagus crowns. A light frost won't hurt them, and they grow best in cool weather.

Hardy: plant 1 to 3 weeks before your last frost

Young beet plants growing in a spring garden bed — Beets can be planted in spring, a week or more before your last frost.

Potatoes, beets, carrots, Swiss chard, parsnips, and transplants of broccoli, cabbage, and cauliflower. Cover them if a hard freeze is forecast.

Tender: plant on or just after your last frost

Bush and pole beans, sweet corn, and tomato transplants. Frost will kill them, so wait until the danger has passed.

Warm-loving: plant 1 to 3 weeks after your last frost

Peppers, eggplant, cucumbers, squash, melons, and basil. They sulk in cold soil, so give them warm days and warm nights, with soil at least 60°F.

Plant from the top of the list down, and your spring vegetable garden fills in naturally over about two months. For more on which crops belong to which season, Bonnie Plants has a helpful seasonal planting guide.

Free Spring Vegetable Planting Chart

Spring vegetables to plant chart: planting time, days to harvest, and notes for beets, broccoli, carrots, garden peas, onions, lettuce, potatoes, spinach, radishes, turnips, and cabbage — Click the chart to download and print this free spring vegetable planting chart.

Knowing what to plant isn't always the hard part. Knowing when is.

This spring planting chart covers eleven of the most reliable cool-weather crops: beets, broccoli, carrots, garden peas, onions, lettuce, potatoes, spinach, radishes, turnips, and cabbage.

It runs from quick radishes, ready in about three weeks, to slower onions and cabbage that take a couple of months. Each entry shows the planting time, days to harvest, and a quick tip, so you can see at a glance what belongs in the ground first.

Free Printable Spring Vegetable Gardening Checklist

Spring vegetable gardening checklist showing seven steps: starting seeds indoors, preparing garden beds, testing soil, direct-sowing cold-hardy crops, hardening off seedlings, transplanting, and setting up plant supports — Click the checklist to download and print it.

After a quiet winter, spring is when everything starts moving again. Beds need preparing, seeds need starting, and timing matters more now than at any other time of year.

Print this checklist and work through it step by step as the season gets underway: start seeds indoors, prepare the beds, test the soil, sow the cold-hardy crops, harden off your seedlings, transplant, and set up supports.

Want your list month by month? Our free monthly vegetable garden checklist builds one for your own zip code.

Your Spring Garden Month by Month

Monthly vegetable garden checklist for March: a puppy watching seedling trays on a sunny windowsill — March: seedlings on the windowsill, peas and spinach in the garden.

Late winter and March

Start seeds indoors and sow the hardiest crops. Start onions, leeks, peppers, and tomatoes indoors on schedule. Where the soil can be worked, sow peas, spinach, and radishes. Our seed starting chart and guide to growing vegetables from seed show how.

April

Plant the hardy crops and harden off seedlings. Plant potatoes, onion sets, beets, carrots, and broccoli and cabbage transplants. Sow a short row of lettuce every two or three weeks for a steady supply.

May

Monthly vegetable garden checklist for May: a puppy with a watering can and tomato seedlings beside staked rows under lilacs — May: tomatoes go in once the soil is warm.

Plant the warm-season crops once frost is past. Set out tomatoes and peppers, sow beans, squash, cucumbers, and corn, and stake tomatoes when you plant them. Mulch once the soil has warmed.

In warmer zones, all of this happens a month or more earlier. Check the zone chart above for your own dates.

Plan Your Spring Vegetable Garden Ahead

The most important thing you can do before planting is plan ahead. Gardens are not hard to start or maintain. Good planning just makes everything easier.

Start by deciding which vegetables you want to grow. Most spring vegetables are low-maintenance, and the simplest approach is to choose your family's favorites first.

Don't get too ambitious right away. Many first-time gardeners build a garden too large to keep up with. They lose interest, and the garden gets away from them. Start small, and expand next season if it goes well.

Space matters too. Think about how much room you have before you plan what to plant, and follow the planting instructions on your seed packets. Each variety has its own spacing and depth.

Plan your spring garden with our free Garden Planner

Free interactive vegetable garden planner: drag and drop vegetables into a garden bed — Click to open the free Garden Planner.

Spring is the perfect time to map out your garden on paper first. Our free Vegetable Garden Planner works right in your web browser, with nothing to download and no sign-up.

Pick your bed size, then drag tomatoes, peppers, lettuce, carrots, beans, and companion flowers into the bed. Each plant takes up the space it needs, so you can see exactly how many plants will fit before you buy a single seed packet.

Print your plan and take it to the garden center, or keep it in your garden journal. It works for a backyard row garden, a raised bed, or a square foot garden.

Our companion planting chart shows which vegetables grow best side by side.

Colorful vegetable seed packets ready to inspire spring garden planting — When spring comes around, our thoughts turn to colorful seed packets and a beautiful vegetable garden.

How to Plant a Spring Backyard Row Garden

Gardener turning garden soil with a pitchfork in early spring — Spring is a good time to dig the beds and plant early vegetables.

Pick a sunny spot. Choose a spot with at least six to eight hours of sun and mark it off.
Clear and dig the bed. Remove the grass with a garden fork, a spade, or a tiller if you have one. Work the soil eight to ten inches deep, but only once it's dry enough to crumble in your hand.
Add compost. Work compost or well-aged manure into the topsoil. Compost loosens the soil and adds nutrients.
Sow your seeds. Follow the seed packet for depth and spacing. Cover the rows with soil, then water gently. A strong stream of water can wash tiny seeds right out of their rows.
Mulch. Once the seedlings are up and the soil has warmed, a layer of straw mulch holds in moisture and keeps weeds down.
Water and weed. From here, most of the hard work is done. Keep the garden watered during dry spells, and stay ahead of the weeds.

Child planting bean seeds in a spring vegetable garden row — Planting seeds in the spring garden. A serious job, but fun!

Short on space? Our small vegetable garden plans and raised bed guide work just as well for a spring garden.

Spring Vegetable Garden Tips

Young vegetable seedlings in small pots, ready to harden off for the spring garden — Seedlings ready to harden off and plant out.

Protect early plants with milk jugs. Many experienced gardeners cut the bottoms off plastic milk jugs and set them over young plants. The jugs keep cutworms away, warm the soil, and protect tender plants from a late frost. Remove them once the weather warms.

Keep row cover handy. A light frost blanket thrown over the beds on a cold night can save a whole planting of early lettuce or potatoes.

Check your soil pH if plants grow slowly. If it's too high or too low, growth suffers. A small application of garden lime usually corrects soil that is too acidic.

Feed poor soil lightly. If your soil isn't especially fertile, a liquid fish fertilizer every two to three weeks can help.

Don't work wet soil. Digging soggy spring soil packs it into hard clods that last all summer. Squeeze a handful: if it crumbles, it's ready.

Spring salad greens growing together in a raised vegetable garden bed — A spring vegetable salad garden.

Growing a spring vegetable garden is a great way to get outside after a long winter. Every season teaches you something new, and you'll be rewarded with fresh, homegrown vegetables for your family to enjoy. So start planning, and enjoy your garden!

Spring Vegetable Garden Questions

Colorful purple and green vegetables from a home vegetable garden

When should I plant my spring vegetable garden?: Start with the hardiest crops, like peas, spinach, and radishes, 4 to 6 weeks before your average last frost. Plant tomatoes, peppers, and beans after your last frost. Check the zone chart above for your dates.
What vegetables can I plant in early spring?: Peas, spinach, lettuce, radishes, onion sets, kale, and turnips can all be planted in early spring, as soon as the soil can be worked. A light frost won't hurt them.
Can I plant before my last frost date?: Yes, for cool-season crops. Very hardy vegetables go in 4 to 6 weeks before your last frost, and hardy ones 1 to 3 weeks before. Warm-season crops must wait.
What if a late frost is forecast after I plant?: Cover tender plants overnight with row cover, old sheets, buckets, or milk jugs, and remove the covers in the morning. Cool-season crops usually come through a light frost unharmed.
What are the easiest spring vegetables for beginners?: Radishes, lettuce, peas, and spinach are the easiest. Radishes are ready in about three weeks. See our list of the easiest vegetables to grow.
How warm should the soil be to plant?: Peas, spinach, and lettuce sprout in soil as cool as 40°F. Beans and corn need about 60°F, and tomatoes, peppers, squash, and cucumbers do best at 65°F or warmer.

More Seasonal Vegetable Garden Guides

Spring is one chapter in the year-round story of the vegetable garden. Our Seasonal Vegetable Garden hub has guides for every season.

Seasonal Vegetable Garden Summer Garden Cold Frame Garden Cold Hardy Vegetables Vegetable Planting Calendar Succession Planting Monthly Garden Checklist All Free Printables

Watercolor scenes of the vegetable garden through the four seasons — The vegetable garden through the four seasons, from our free 2027 garden calendar.

A white garden mailbox with an American robin on top and its door open, spilling seed packets and garden printables

Want the next free printable first?
My short garden email, Get the Dirt, comes Saturday mornings.
Sign Up for My Free Newsletter

On This Page