Outdoor seed starting times

Garden bed ready for outdoor sowing

Sunday, March 17, 2019

If indoor seed starting is not your thing, but you still want to have the variety and cost effectiveness of seeds, you can direct sow your seeds directly into the garden.  If you are planting in mulch, be sure to open a hole in the mulch, plant the seed to the depth on the seed packet and cover with potting soil.  Mulch can form a hard crust that only the strongest seedling (like beans and squash) can break through.

I would prepare the beds first with fertilizer and mulch before starting seeds.  You can do a soil test yourself or send off for one if you want to create a fertilizer specific to your needs.   See this post for details The next step in garden production and your nutrition-soil minerals  If this is over the top for you, just use a good organic fertilizer at the recommended rate, an inch of compost, and cover with mulch.  You want to make sure your fertilizer is covered or you will lose a good portion of the nitrogen to the atmosphere.  I love gardening in mulch for many reasons that you can read about here:  Weed free, self fertilizing, till free garden beds

Here is the by month seed sowing calendar for a Zone 6 or 7 garden.  There are so many early and late varieties available that you should consult the seed packet on the best outdoor sowing times (always listed as the weeks before your last frost date Frost date look up) as you may be able to sow the seeds even sooner outdoors than has been typical in the past.

You can plant either in a garden bed or pot.  Lately, I have really liked sowing seeds in a pot I leave on the deck so I can keep them moist and watch them more closely.  I also like to start cold season crops like lettuce and spinach super early in a pot under a portable greenhouse.  This gives a quick start to growing.  When the seedlings have sprouted and have at least a second set of leaves, I transplant into the garden bed or long term pot.  Outdoor seed starting tips

You can also practice succession planting which means planting a few seeds of the same crop every 2-3 weeks so that you get a continuous harvest, like lettuce and spinach.  Want continuous harvests? Succession planting!  Another option is to plant early, mid or late types of the same veggie all at the same time so you have them ready for harvest for a longer period of time.

February (as soon as soil can be worked)

Asparagus

Fruit trees and bushes

Garlic

Grapes

Peas

Shallots

March

Arugula

Asparagus

Beets

Broccoli

Cabbage

Carrots

Chamomile

Chives

Collards

Cress

Fava beans

Fruit bushes

Kale

Kohlrabi

Leek

Lettuce (sow every 2 weeks if you are a salad lover for continuous salads)

Mache (corn salad)

Mustard

Onion

Parsnips

Peas

Potatoes

Rhubarb

Spinach (sow every 2 weeks through early May)

Turnips

April

Artichoke

Beans (snap-bush & pole)

Bee balm (monarda)

Borage

Broccoli

Brussels sprouts

Carrots

Catnip

Cauliflower

Celeriac

Celery

Chard

Cilantro

Corn

Cucumber

Dill

Endive

Fennel

Fruit bushes

Horseradish

Lavender

Lemon balm

Lettuce

Lovage

Mizuna

Mustard

Onions

Parsley

Potatoes

Radicchio

Radishes

Spinach

Summer squash (like zucchini)

Tarragon

Thyme

Valerian

May

Basil

Bay

Beans (dry & lima)

Edamame

Eggplant

Lemon verbena

Marjoram

Melons (cantaloupe, watermelons)

Mint

Okra

Onions

Oregano

Peppers

Potatoes

Rosemary

Sage

Malabar & New Zealand spinach

Stevia

Sweet potato

Winter squash (like pumpkins and butternut squash)

Tomatoes

June

Bush beans
Beets
Carrots
Collards
Corn
Cowpeas
Cucumbers
Eggplant
Okra
Salsify
Summer Squash (like Zucchini)
Sweet Potatoes
Tomatoes
Turnips
Watermelons

July
Bush beans
Beets
Broccoli
Brussels Sprouts
Cabbage
Carrots
Cauliflower
Celery
Collards
Corn
Salsify
Tomatoes
Turnips

August
Bush Beans
Beets
Kale
Lettuce
Mustard
Radishes
Spinach
Turnips

September
Kale
Lettuce
Winter Onions
Radishes
Spinach

October
Asparagus
Garlic
White Onions
Rutabaga

November
Asparagus
Garlic
Winter Onions
Rutabaga

You can plant later than is shown above; just not earlier for risk of it being too cold for the seed sprout and the seed may rot.  The warm season crops, ones planted in May, don't like getting their feet cold so a little later can actually help them to grow faster.  Ideal soil temperatures for seed starting

Most of the sowing in July and later is for fall and winter harvesting.  There are exceptions like tomatoes, beans, corn and summer squash.  These are planted so that you continue to get a robust harvest well into fall.  For more on fall and winter edible garden planting see  Time to plant for fall and winter harvests!  Plant a last minute edible fall/winter garden

For other tips on warming the soil and keeping warm season crops protected for early planting, see Extend the season with protection for plants