Tag: garden plan

The dates listed below are not etched in stone. I think they will work for my garden in zone 7A (with a little help from some reliable season-extending equipment), but then again, maybe not. Work and weather tend to skew the schedule a bit. Planting crops even slightly out of season can be a real crapshoot, because the elements can get ugly in a hurry. I’ve learned the hard way that cloches and row covers are no match for an ice storm, and a heat wave in September can easily fry fall crops. To complicate things, my job gets crazy busy in the spring and summer. I’m gone most of the day, and I can’t plant if I’m not home. So, the dates listed below are ideal, calculated to get the highest yield from the greatest variety of vegetables possible. Weather and work will determine how close we get to them.

More importantly, the cultivars listed below aren’t there because I think they’re all fabulous. Some are: I’ve used them for years with great results. But not all. Some are there because a blurb in a seed catalog proclaimed them “high-yielding” or “extremely cold-tolerant”. Some are only there because I got the seeds for free with an early order. It’s important to try new things. We’ll find out how good they are when we total up the yield at harvest time.

January

22: Start indoors, under lights: 10 kohlrabi (Early White Vienna), 10 broccoli (Eastern Magic), 4 red cabbage (Ruby Perfection) and 6 green cabbage (Ferry’s Round Dutch).

February

1: Start indoors, under lights: flat of onions (200 seeds of Patterson), at least 15 leeks (American Flag), 2 chard (Bright Lights), 1 kale (Red Russian) and 9 lettuce (Winter Density).

9: Move three 25 gallon containers into sunny area in garden, add compost and cover with plastic.

15: Start indoors, under lights: 2 early tomatoes (1 Stupice, 1 Early Doll) and 8 lettuce (Winter Density). Soak broad bean seeds in water overnight.

16: Plant broad beans (Broad Windsor) in prepared containers, set up supports and cover with plastic.

March

1: Direct sow snap peas (Sugar Sprint), carrots (Nutri-Red) and beets (Detroit Dark Red) in garden. Cover with a row cover. Start potato seeds (whole packet of Clancy) indoors, under lights. Start 8 lettuce (Winter Density) indoors, under lights. Transplant lettuce from 2/1. Direct sow 2 square feet of radishes. Begin hardening off cabbage, kohlrabi, broccoli, kale and chard.

7: Start 3 bell (California Wonder 300 TMR) and 2 poblano (Baron F1) peppers indoors, under lights. **Note – I might not need all of these. I saved 3 pepper plants from last year (2 poblano and 1 bell). I dug them up last fall, stuffed them into 5 gallon containers and stuck them in the basement. They look dead, but if, perchance, they are still alive, I’ll move them outside around mid-April.**

15: Transplant cabbage, kohlrabi, broccoli, kale and chard. Start 8 lettuce (Winter Density) indoors, under lights. Transplant lettuce from 2/15.

20: Begin hardening off onions, leeks and early tomatoes. Direct sow 2 square feet of radishes (Easter Basket Mix).

April

1: Transplant onions and leeks into garden. Cover with a row cover. Transplant early tomatoes into 5 gallon containers. Start 3 eggplant (Black Beauty) and 8 lettuce (Winter Density) indoors, under lights. Transplant lettuce from 3/1. Start hardening off potatoes.

7: Start 4 main crop tomatoes (Cherokee Purple? Brandywine? Beefsteak? I haven’t decided which varieties yet!) indoors, under lights. Direct seed 2 square feet of radishes (Easter Basket Mix).

15: Transplant potatoes. Start 8 lettuce (Prizehead) indoors, under lights. Transplant lettuce from 3/15.

20: Start hardening off peppers.

May

1: Transplant peppers to containers. Start 8 lettuce (Prizehead) indoors, under lights. Transplant lettuce from 4/1.

7: Plant Block #1 of corn (Sweetness).

15: Direct sow zucchini (Zucchino Rampicante) and cucumbers (Homemade Pickles) along fence. Start 8 lettuce (Prizehead) indoors, under lights. Transplant lettuce from 4/15. Start hardening off sweet potatoes, main crop tomatoes and eggplant.

21: Plant Block #2 of corn (Sweetness).

June

1: Transplant sweet potatoes and main crop tomatoes. Start 2 more quick-growing tomatoes indoors, under lights. Transplant eggplants to 25 gallon containers after broad beans are harvested. Direct seed pole beans (Stringless Blue Lake S-7) and winter squash (Musquee de Maroc). Transplant lettuce from 5/1.

4: Plant Block #3 of corn (Sweetness).

15: Transplant lettuce from 5/15.

July

1: Start indoors, under lights: 3 red cabbage (Ruby Perfection) and 4 green cabbage (Ferry’s Round Dutch). Start hardening off last 2 tomato plants.

15: Transplant last 2 tomatoes to containers. Start indoors, under lights: 6 white cauliflower (Rober), 6 green cauliflower (Romanesco Italia) and 6 orange cauliflower (Cheddar).

August

1: Start 8 lettuce (Prizehead) indoors, under lights.

8: Start hardening off cabbage.

15: Direct sow 3 rows of carrots (Rainbow Mix) and 3 rows of beets (Detroit Dark Red). Start 8 lettuce (Prizehead) indoors, under lights.

21: Transplant cabbage. Start hardening off cauliflower.

September

1: Transplant cauliflower into garden, containers, and any other available space. Start lettuce (Winter Density) indoors, under lights. Transplant lettuce from 8/1.

7: Direct sow 3 more rows of carrots (Rainbow Mix) and 2 more rows of beets (Detroit Dark Red).

15: Start 8 lettuce (Winter Density) indoors, under lights. Transplant lettuce from 8/15. Direct sow 2 square feet of radishes (Easter Basket Mix).

October

1: Start 8 lettuce (Winter Density) indoors, under lights. Transplant lettuce from 9/1. Cover lettuce bed with row cover.

7: Direct seed 2 square feet of radishes (Easter Basket Mix).

15: Start 8 lettuce (Winter Density) indoors, under lights. Transplant lettuce from 9/15.

28: Direct seed 2 square feet of radishes (Easter Basket Mix).

November

1: Start 8 lettuce (Winter Density) indoors, under lights. Transplant lettuce from 10/1.

15: Start 8 lettuce (Winter Density) indoors, under lights. Transplant lettuce from 10/15.

December:

1: Transplant lettuce from 11/1.

15: Transplant lettuce from 11/15.