Nothing welcomes spring like a cold frame full of seedlings.
Hi winter-weary gardeners! We’ve finally had our first really nice snow of the season here in the mid-Hudson Valley–about five inches of fluffy, soft, and brilliant white flaky powder. It’s great and all, but it’s mid-February, and my heart and mind are on spring.
We decided that it’s high-time to put up more general gardening how-to information on the site, and we’ve decided to use the blog to do so.
Our first effort: a six-part series on seed-starting basics, to be posted every Wednesday for the next six weeks.
The first topic is… (drumroll, please)…
Crafting a Seed-Starting Schedule
From the soft comfort of a fireside rocking chair, your garden holds endless possibilities. You can picture–taste, even–the sweet tang of your certain bushels of tomatoes, the crisp crunch of cucumbers, the melting delicateness of a pile of stir-fried snow peas. All of this dreaming is essential–and at least partly true–but luckily February moves along, and wispy garden dreams must solidify into concrete garden plans if you hope to bring your visions to fruition, so to speak.
There are many garden plans to be made–questions of fencing, fertility, and size, among countless others–but one of the most vital is planning your schedule for starting seeds.
The key information to establishing your plan is your last spring frost date. This date is the average last day that gardeners can expect a frost to visit their garden. Here in the Mid-Hudson Valley, this date is about May 10th. However, this date differs significantly throughout the state (see this link from Cornell for an enlightening map), and it is also often refuted by actual fact: in both 2008 and 2009, for example, much of the Hudson Valley experienced a late May frost strong enough to damage frost-tender crops significantly. Still, we need a starting point, and the last frost date is it. (Outside NYS? Check out this link for extremely thorough frost and freeze data from throughout the country.)
Below is a rough schedule of spring seed-starting tasks in our region. For gardeners in the NYC metro area, you can start seeds about two or three weeks earlier than listed; for gardeners north and west of the Hudson Valley, you can start seeds about one week later than listed. Live elsewhere? Modify the chart by figuring out the difference between your frost date and May 10th, then adjust your plantings by that increment in either direction.
This table is a work in progress (it’s also too busy-looking for my taste–but it’ll have to do for now). It is not meant to be prescriptive; it just lists sowing and transplanting opportunities for each of the main spring planting weeks. Many flowers and herbs are not yet included, and probably a few veggies are missing, too. Share your preferred planting dates in the comments, and let me know what’s missing–I’ll update this as much as I can over the next week or two. Enjoy!
“Under Protection” means in a cold frame, greenhouse, or indoors with supplemental lighting.
| Week Starting… | Seed-Starting Opportunities in the Mid-Hudson Valley (May 10th Frost Date) |
| Feb 14th | Under Protection: Onions, Leeks, Scallions, Chives, Garlic Chives, Celery, Celeriac, Artichoke |
| Feb 21st | Under Protection: Onions, Leeks, Scallions, Chives, Garlic Chives, Celery, Celeriac, Artichoke |
| Feb 28th | Under Protection: Onions, Leeks, Scallions, Chives, Garlic Chives, Celery, Celeriac, Artichoke |
| March 7th | Under Protection: Arugula, Spring Raab, Parsley, Onions, Leeks, Scallions, Chives, Garlic Chives, Celery, Celeriac, Artichoke |
| March 14th | Under Protection: Lettuce, early Cabbage, Kale, Collards, Broccoli, Arugula, Spring Raab, Parsley, Onions, Leeks, Scallions, Chives, Garlic Chives, Celery, Celeriac Direct Sow: Spinach, Peas, Arugula, Spring/Summer Onions |
| March 21st | Under Protection: Peppers, Tomatoes, Eggplant, Chard, Lettuce, early Cabbage, Kale, Collards, Broccoli, Tatsoi, Bok Choy, Arugula, Spring Raab, Parsley, Scallions, Chives, Garlic Chives Direct Sow: Radishes, Spinach, Peas, Arugula, Spring/Summer Onions |
| March 28th | Under Protection: Peppers, Tomatoes, Eggplant, Chard, Lettuce, early Cabbage, Kale, Collards, Broccoli, Tatsoi, Bok Choy, Arugula, Spring Raab, Parsley, Scallions, Chives, Garlic Chives Direct Sow: Spring Raab, Radishes, Spinach, Peas, Arugula, Spring/Summer Onions |
| April 7th | Under Protection: Peppers, Tomatoes, Eggplant, Chard, Lettuce, early Cabbage, Kale, Collards, Broccoli, Tatsoi, Bok Choy, Arugula, Spring Raab, Parsley, Scallions, Chives, Garlic Chives Direct Sow: Spring Raab, Radishes, Spinach, Peas, Arugula, Spring/Summer Onions |
| April 14th | Under Protection: Peppers, Tomatoes, Eggplant, Chard, Lettuce, early Cabbage, Kale, Collards, Broccoli, Tatsoi, Bok Choy, Arugula, Spring Raab, Parsley, Scallions, Chives, Garlic Chives Direct Sow: Lettuce, Carrots, Parsnips, Spring Raab, Radishes, Spinach, Peas, Arugula, Spring/Summer Onions Transplant:Lettuce, Spring Raab, Parsley, Scallions, Chives, Garlic Chives |
| April 21st | Under Protection: Chard, Peppers, Tomatoes, Eggplant, Lettuce, early Cabbage, Kale, Collards, Broccoli, Tatsoi, Bok Choy, Arugula, Spring Raab, Parsley, Scallions, Chives, Garlic Chives Direct Sow: Chard, Beets, Lettuce, Carrots, Parsnips, Spring Raab, Radishes, Spinach, Peas, Arugula, Spring/Summer Onions Transplant:Lettuce, Spring Raab, Parsley, Scallions, Chives, Garlic Chives |
| April 28th | Under Protection: Peppers, Tomatoes, Eggplant, early Cabbage, Kale, Collards, Broccoli, Tatsoi, Bok Choy, Arugula, Spring Raab, Parsley, Scallions, Chives, Garlic Chives Direct Sow: Chard, Beets, Lettuce, Carrots, Parsnips, Spring Raab, Radishes, Spinach, Peas, Arugula, Spring/Summer Onions Transplant: early Cabbage, Kale, Collards, Broccoli, Tatsoi, Bok Choy, Arugula, Lettuce, Spring Raab, Parsley, Scallions, Chives, Garlic Chives |
| May 7th | Under Protection: Okra, Cucumbers, Melons, Squash, main season Cabbage, Tomatoes, Tatsoi, Bok Choy Direct Sow: Chard, Beets, Corn, Lettuce, Carrots, Parsnips, Radishes, Spinach, Peas, Arugula Transplant: early Cabbage, Kale, Collards, Broccoli, Tatsoi, Bok Choy, Arugula, Lettuce, Spring Raab, Parsley, Scallions, Chives, Garlic Chives |
| May 14th | Under Protection: Okra, Cucumbers, Melons, Squash, main season Cabbage, Tomatoes, Tatsoi, Bok Choy Direct Sow: Chard, Beets, Beans, Corn, Lettuce, Carrots, Parsnips, Radishes, Spinach, Peas, Arugula, Spring Raab Transplant: early Cabbage, Kale, Collards, Broccoli, Tatsoi, Bok Choy, Arugula, Lettuce, Parsley, Scallions, Chives, Garlic Chives |
| May 21st | Under Protection: Okra, Cucumbers, Melons, Squash, main season Cabbage, Tomatoes Direct Sow: Beans, Corn, Lettuce, Carrots, Parsnips, Arugula Transplant: Tomatoes, early Cabbage, Kale, Collards, Broccoli, Tatsoi, Bok Choy, Arugula, Lettuce, Parsley, Scallions, Chives, Garlic Chives |
| May 28th | Under Protection: Okra, Melons Direct Sow: Cucumbers, Squash, Beans, Corn, Lettuce, Carrots, Parsnips, Arugula Transplant: Cucumbers, Squash, Peppers, Eggplant, Tomatoes, Kale Collards, Tatsoi, Bok Choy, Arugula, Parsley, Scallions, Chives, Garlic Chives |
| June 7th | Direct Sow: Okra, Melons, Cucumbers, Squash, Beans, Corn, Lettuce, Carrots, Parsnips, Arugula Transplant: Okra, Melons, Cucumbers, Squash, Peppers, Eggplant, Tomatoes, main season Cabbage |
Tags: frost date, garden planning, seed starting, seed starting chart
Doug! You are a genius. This blog post is so amazing and helpful. I’m looking forward to the rest of the posts. xo C
This is so great - thanks!!! Would radishes go in at the same time as carrots? Chard at the same time as spinach?
Actually, it’s closer to the other way around: radishes with spinach and chard with carrots. But thanks for spotting the holes! I’ll fill them in right now. Anyone else see missing items? I know there must be some more…
I do not have a way to do the “under protection” planting now. I remember someone suggesting to me that I can direct sow the seeds that can stand the cold as early as December for the following spring (cabbage, lettuce, kale, spinach, snap peas…I think) and they will come up when the conditions are right. Is this a bad idea? I direct sowed those seeds in March once and it worked out ok, but I would like to know if it is a big risk to do it that way. Please let me know your thoughts on this.
Thanks for publishing this guide! We’re in Poughkeepsie, and this is our second year doing vegeteable gardening. Last year, we started all of our flats indoors simultaneously, but all the reading we’ve been doing this year says that it’s best to more carefully calibrate each plant’s sowing time to # of weeks to transplant, as you show so clearly in your table above.
This seed-starting guide is awesome! I’ve seen a lot of this information before, but never condensed into a single, coherent series. Elsewhere, it’s spread out all over the web. Keep up the great work!
Cold or Winter Sowing can work out great. I know people who swear by sowing their spinach around Thanksgiving time. The seeds get growing as soon as possible in spring, leading to a slightly earlier harvest. There is some risk; if we have a winter warm spell, seeds can germinate early and be killed if the weather turns too cold too fast. So I’d only recommend it for the crops you mention that are ultra-hardy at their seedling stage: spinach and peas. The brassicas germinate so quickly in warmer temps that it just seems like less bother to germinate them indoors or in a cold frame or in the garden in spring. But give it a try and let us know how it works for you. Good luck!
Thanks for being here.
Two questions for now, 1. would ‘days to harvest’ refer to days from transplant date or from seed starting day?
2. If seeds seed to germinate well just by a sunny window, is there a reason to use supplemental lighting?
Thanks
Judy
Thank you SO much.This is VERY helpful.
This list is great! It’s not too busy at all; far better than the scattered notes I usually use. I have a question about okra: should I follow the same time schedule as for tomatoes?
Thanks for finding another missing bit! For okra you’d actually follow the guidelines for melons. Okra is a fast-growing crop, so if started indoors it should be started not too early–lest it become unwieldy or leggy before being transplanted. It can be direct sown in early June along with the melons; I’m updating the chart to include this.
Days to harvest generally refers to days from seeding, except in the cases of tomatoes, peppers, and eggplants, when “days to harvest” refers to number of days after the transplant date. A sunny windowsill can work for raising seedlings in rare cases, so if it’s worked for you in the past, I’d encourage you to do what works. However, most “sunny” windows get significantly less sun than most people think, and it’s unidirectional, so seedlings often end up stretching higher and toward the window in search of rays. Leggy seedlings tend to be weak and face more challenges at transplant time. If in doubt, perhaps position a lamp with a compact fluorescent bulb near one portion of your windowsill and monitor the differences between those seedlings that get the extra light and those that don’t. No purchases necessary–worth a shot!
[...] Hudson Valley Seed Library blog is doing a series on seed starting - here’s a link to part one. I particularly like that table for seed starting [...]
Do you differentiate between types of lettuce in terms of starting seed Under Protection vs Direct Sow? Or are they just like other transplantable vegetables, where starting indoors is always better if you care about extending your season and have the resources (light, warmth) to do so?
I don’t really differentiate except when going for a baby lettuce or mesclun mix, which I always direct sow. (The work involved in raising seedlings to harvest only one or two weeks after transplanting seems silly.) Lettuce transplants well and can be started directly in a cold frame with no problems; transplanted lettuce is more evenly spaced and easier to harvest. If you only have room to start certain types early, go for the romaines, as they take the longest to reach maturity. And remember that lettuce germinates best in slightly cooler conditions than other vegetables–in the 60-70 degree range is best.
Thanks, Doug! That’s very helpful. Depending on the varieties we have, our space constraints, and whether this snow melts in time, we’ll determine what gets started as direct sow under cold frame vs indoor under lights.
I noticed you had cucumbers and squash on May 7 for starting under protection and May 28 for transplant. Few questions:
I was surprised that 3 weeks would be enough to raise them to a transplantable size. You don’t see any benefit in starting them earlier to get them bigger before putting them in the garden?
Also, is the reason you recommend putting them out over 2 weeks after the last frost date that they are particularly prone to cold weather shock?
Hey Naseer,
Cucurbits grow more quickly than most other veggies–they fast become unmanageable (and unhappy) in trays or soil blocks. So, three or four weeks is the maximum amount of time you’d want to wait before transplanting. And yes, they–like peppers and eggplants–gain nothing from being transplanted into cool soil. If you warm it or provide row cover, an earlier transplant is fine, but otherwise it’s best to wait until the later part of May when the soil’s a bit warmer. (Of course, the chart is a guideline for a usual year. Some years the soil does warm up more quickly, and the warm weather does settle in earlier, so temper the advice in the chart with observations of the real weather conditions as they unfold.)
Doug
[...] lots of questions from gardeners who are confused about what to plant and when. Doug’s Seed Starting 101: Crafting a Seed Starting Schedule is a great place to look for answers. Here’s a real-time list of What’s In and [...]
Hi Doug,
This table has been SUPER helpful, thanks! For the last couple of years I haphazardly started some seeds indoors or under protection, with a variety of horrible reults
This year, armed with your schedule & a cold frame based on the one you also posted in this series, I am creating a small batallion of seedlings… Some are just unfurling towards the sky, & others are growing vigorously and getting their grownup leaves… and I CAN’T TELL YOU how good it feels to know they’re doing it on a sensible schedule. Thanks a million!
Kate