Planting calendar
Zone 5 Planting Calendar: What to Plant Each Month
Last updated July 31, 2026
Zone 5 runs winter lows of -20 to -10°F, and is conventionally taken to average its last spring frost around April 30 and its first fall frost around October 10 — about 163 frost-free days. Comfortable for nearly every beginner crop, with room for a spring planting and a fall planting of greens.
Sow frost-tolerant crops (peas, spinach, radishes, lettuce, kale, carrots) 6 to 2 weeks before April 30. Plant warm-season crops (beans, zucchini, cucumbers, tomatoes, peppers) 1 to 3 weeks after it. Sow a second round of greens and roots about 10 to 12 weeks before October 10.
Typical regions in zone 5: Iowa, Nebraska, Illinois, Ohio, upstate New York, Massachusetts, Colorado Front Range.
Month by month in zone 5
7 of the 12 months have something to plant in zone 5. Rows marked re-sow are succession sowings — the same crop planted again every 14 days for a continuous harvest, up to the last date it can still mature before October 10.
February
| Crop | What to do | Window |
|---|---|---|
| Onion | Start indoors | February 19 - March 5 |
| Pepper | Start indoors | February 19 - March 5 |
March
| Crop | What to do | Window |
|---|---|---|
| Kale | Start indoors | March 19 - April 2 |
| Onion | Start indoors | February 19 - March 5 |
| Pepper | Start indoors | February 19 - March 5 |
| Tomato | Start indoors | March 5 - March 19 |
| Peas | Direct sow outdoors | March 19 - April 2 |
| Spinach | Direct sow outdoors | March 19 - April 2 |
April
| Crop | What to do | Window |
|---|---|---|
| Cucumber | Start indoors | April 2 - April 9 |
| Kale | Start indoors | March 19 - April 2 |
| Carrot | Direct sow outdoors | April 9 - April 16 |
| Kale | Direct sow outdoors | April 2 - April 16 |
| Lettuce (leaf) | Direct sow outdoors | April 2 - April 16 |
| Peas | Direct sow outdoors | March 19 - April 2 |
| Radish | Direct sow outdoors | April 2 - April 16 |
| Spinach | Direct sow outdoors | March 19 - April 2 |
| Onion | Transplant outdoors | April 2 - April 16 |
| Carrot | Re-sow every 14 days | last sowing July 8 |
| Kale | Re-sow every 14 days | last sowing July 23 |
| Lettuce (leaf) | Re-sow every 14 days | last sowing August 2 |
| Radish | Re-sow every 14 days | last sowing August 27 |
| Spinach | Re-sow every 14 days | last sowing August 7 |
May
| Crop | What to do | Window |
|---|---|---|
| Bush beans | Direct sow outdoors | May 7 - May 14 |
| Cucumber | Direct sow outdoors | May 14 - May 21 |
| Zucchini | Direct sow outdoors | May 14 - May 21 |
| Pepper | Transplant outdoors | May 14 - May 21 |
| Tomato | Transplant outdoors | May 7 - May 14 |
| Bush beans | Re-sow every 14 days | last sowing July 28 |
| Carrot | Re-sow every 14 days | last sowing July 8 |
| Kale | Re-sow every 14 days | last sowing July 23 |
| Lettuce (leaf) | Re-sow every 14 days | last sowing August 2 |
| Radish | Re-sow every 14 days | last sowing August 27 |
| Spinach | Re-sow every 14 days | last sowing August 7 |
June
| Crop | What to do | Window |
|---|---|---|
| Carrot | Direct sow for a fall crop | June 24 - July 8 |
| Bush beans | Re-sow every 14 days | last sowing July 28 |
| Carrot | Re-sow every 14 days may bolt in heat | last sowing July 8 |
| Kale | Re-sow every 14 days may bolt in heat | last sowing July 23 |
| Lettuce (leaf) | Re-sow every 14 days may bolt in heat | last sowing August 2 |
| Radish | Re-sow every 14 days may bolt in heat | last sowing August 27 |
| Spinach | Re-sow every 14 days may bolt in heat | last sowing August 7 |
July
| Crop | What to do | Window |
|---|---|---|
| Carrot | Direct sow for a fall crop | June 24 - July 8 |
| Kale | Direct sow for a fall crop | July 9 - July 23 |
| Lettuce (leaf) | Direct sow for a fall crop | July 19 - August 2 |
| Peas | Direct sow for a fall crop | July 4 - July 18 |
| Spinach | Direct sow for a fall crop | July 24 - August 7 |
| Bush beans | Re-sow every 14 days | last sowing July 28 |
| Carrot | Re-sow every 14 days may bolt in heat | last sowing July 8 |
| Kale | Re-sow every 14 days may bolt in heat | last sowing July 23 |
| Lettuce (leaf) | Re-sow every 14 days may bolt in heat | last sowing August 2 |
| Radish | Re-sow every 14 days may bolt in heat | last sowing August 27 |
| Spinach | Re-sow every 14 days may bolt in heat | last sowing August 7 |
August
| Crop | What to do | Window |
|---|---|---|
| Lettuce (leaf) | Direct sow for a fall crop | July 19 - August 2 |
| Radish | Direct sow for a fall crop | August 13 - August 27 |
| Spinach | Direct sow for a fall crop | July 24 - August 7 |
| Radish | Re-sow every 14 days may bolt in heat | last sowing August 27 |
| Spinach | Re-sow every 14 days may bolt in heat | last sowing August 7 |
Nothing to sow outdoors in January, September, October, November, December in zone 5. Crops already in the ground keep growing and keep being harvested. Use the time to plan beds, order seed, build a compost pile, or start long-season crops under a light indoors.
Every crop, sowing to harvest
One row per crop, with the indoor start where it applies, the outdoor planting window, the second fall sowing where the season allows it, and the earliest realistic harvest.
| Crop | Start indoors | Plant outdoors | Fall sowing | Re-sow until | Harvest from |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Radish | - | Direct sow outdoors: April 2 - April 16 | August 13 - August 27 | August 27 | April 24 - May 2 |
| Lettuce (leaf) | - | Direct sow outdoors: April 2 - April 16 | July 19 - August 2 | August 2 | May 17 - May 27 |
| Spinach | - | Direct sow outdoors: March 19 - April 2 | July 24 - August 7 | August 7 | April 28 - May 8 |
| Bush beans | - | Direct sow outdoors: May 7 - May 14 | - | July 28 | June 26 - July 6 |
| Zucchini | - | Direct sow outdoors: May 14 - May 21 | - | - | June 28 - July 8 |
| Kale | March 19 - April 2 | Direct sow outdoors: April 2 - April 16 | July 9 - July 23 | July 23 | May 22 - June 6 |
| Peas | - | Direct sow outdoors: March 19 - April 2 | July 4 - July 18 | - | May 18 - May 28 |
| Carrot | - | Direct sow outdoors: April 9 - April 16 | June 24 - July 8 | July 8 | June 13 - June 28 |
| Cucumber | April 2 - April 9 | Direct sow outdoors: May 14 - May 21 | - | - | July 8 - July 18 |
| Tomato | March 5 - March 19 | Transplant outdoors: May 7 - May 14 | - | - | July 6 - July 31 |
| Pepper | February 19 - March 5 | Transplant outdoors: May 14 - May 21 | - | - | July 23 - August 12 |
| Onion | February 19 - March 5 | Transplant outdoors: April 2 - April 16 | - | - | July 11 - July 31 |
Growing in zone 5
Comfortable for nearly every beginner crop, with room for a spring planting and a fall planting of greens.
Soil beats calendar. Extension guidance for the hardiest crops is “as soon as the soil can be worked” or “as soon as the soil thaws” — not a fixed date. If you cannot crumble a handful of soil in your fist, wait, whatever the table says. Warm-season crops have a matching rule: beans want 60°F soil, cucumbers and squash 70°F.
This matters most in zone 5. The earliest spring windows above assume the ground has thawed and is workable, and in a late spring it may still be frozen or waterlogged on those dates. A raised bed, which warms 2 to 3 weeks earlier than open ground, is the reliable way to hit the early dates here.
About the bolting warnings. Cool-season crops run to seed and turn bitter in summer heat. The “may bolt in heat” flag above is a rough calendar rule — mid-June to the start of September, the same window across the whole country — because a hardiness zone carries no summer-temperature information at all. In zone 5 treat it as about right, with heat-tolerant varieties and afternoon shade extending it either side.
Where these dates come from. A USDA hardiness zone describes average annual extreme minimum WINTER temperature — it is a winter-survival rating for perennials, not a frost-date band. The frost dates below are widely-used approximations for each zone, not official USDA figures, and a single zone spans hundreds of miles. Treat them as a default guess and replace them with your own local averages wherever you have them.
You can enter your own frost dates in the interactive calendar and every window on it recalculates from your numbers. Look up your local averages on the NOAA last-spring-freeze map. Note that an “average” frost date is the point where the chance of freezing drops below 50 percent, so for tender crops it is worth waiting a week or two past it.
Other zones: zone 3 , zone 4 , zone 6 , zone 7 , zone 8 , zone 9 , zone 10 . Or use the interactive calendar to check a single month.
Zone 5 questions
When is the last frost in zone 5?
Zone 5 is conventionally taken to average its last spring frost around April 30 and its first fall frost around October 10, giving roughly 163 frost-free days. Be aware that a hardiness zone is defined by winter minimum temperature, not by frost dates — these are widely-used approximations, not official USDA figures. Get your real dates from the NOAA freeze-date map or your county cooperative extension office.
What can I plant now in zone 5?
Use the month-by-month table on this page. The pattern is: frost-tolerant crops like peas, spinach and radishes go in 6 to 2 weeks before April 30; warm-season crops like beans, zucchini and tomatoes go in 1 to 3 weeks after it; and cool-season crops get a second sowing about 10 to 12 weeks before October 10.
Can I grow tomatoes in zone 5?
Yes. In zone 5, start tomato seed indoors 6 to 8 weeks before April 30 or buy a seedling, then transplant 1 to 2 weeks after the last frost once nights stay above 50°F. With 163 frost-free days there is comfortable room for any variety, including large beefsteak types.
How many harvests can I get in zone 5?
Two full rounds: a spring planting of cool-season crops, a summer planting of warm-season crops, and a fall sowing of greens and roots in the same beds.
Does a raised bed change these dates in zone 5?
Yes, in spring. A raised bed warms 2 to 3 weeks earlier than open ground, so you can bring the early sowings forward by up to two weeks. Autumn dates are unchanged, since the first frost arrives on the same day regardless of your setup.
Keep going
The 10 easiest vegetables for beginners
Ranked by how hard they are to kill, with days to harvest for each.
Raised beds vs containers vs in-ground
Cost, effort and yield compared, so you can pick a setup in one sitting.
Starting seeds indoors
What you actually need, the timeline that works, and how to harden off.