Planting calendar
Zone 6 Planting Calendar: What to Plant Each Month
Last updated July 31, 2026
Zone 6 runs winter lows of -10 to 0°F, and is conventionally taken to average its last spring frost around April 20 and its first fall frost around October 20 — about 183 frost-free days. Roughly six frost-free months. You can plant a spring crop, a summer crop, and a fall crop of the same bed.
Sow frost-tolerant crops (peas, spinach, radishes, lettuce, kale, carrots) 6 to 2 weeks before April 20. 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 20.
Typical regions in zone 6: Kansas City, St. Louis, Philadelphia, southern New England, Pacific Northwest interior.
Month by month in zone 6
8 of the 12 months have something to plant in zone 6. 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 20.
February
| Crop | What to do | Window |
|---|---|---|
| Onion | Start indoors | February 9 - February 23 |
| Pepper | Start indoors | February 9 - February 23 |
| Tomato | Start indoors | February 23 - March 9 |
March
| Crop | What to do | Window |
|---|---|---|
| Cucumber | Start indoors | March 23 - March 30 |
| Kale | Start indoors | March 9 - March 23 |
| Tomato | Start indoors | February 23 - March 9 |
| Carrot | Direct sow outdoors | March 30 - April 6 |
| Kale | Direct sow outdoors | March 23 - April 6 |
| Lettuce (leaf) | Direct sow outdoors | March 23 - April 6 |
| Peas | Direct sow outdoors | March 9 - March 23 |
| Radish | Direct sow outdoors | March 23 - April 6 |
| Spinach | Direct sow outdoors | March 9 - March 23 |
| Onion | Transplant outdoors | March 23 - April 6 |
| Spinach | Re-sow every 14 days | last sowing August 17 |
April
| Crop | What to do | Window |
|---|---|---|
| Bush beans | Direct sow outdoors | April 27 - May 4 |
| Carrot | Direct sow outdoors | March 30 - April 6 |
| Kale | Direct sow outdoors | March 23 - April 6 |
| Lettuce (leaf) | Direct sow outdoors | March 23 - April 6 |
| Radish | Direct sow outdoors | March 23 - April 6 |
| Onion | Transplant outdoors | March 23 - April 6 |
| Tomato | Transplant outdoors | April 27 - May 4 |
| Carrot | Re-sow every 14 days | last sowing July 18 |
| Kale | Re-sow every 14 days | last sowing August 2 |
| Lettuce (leaf) | Re-sow every 14 days | last sowing August 12 |
| Radish | Re-sow every 14 days | last sowing September 6 |
| Spinach | Re-sow every 14 days | last sowing August 17 |
May
| Crop | What to do | Window |
|---|---|---|
| Bush beans | Direct sow outdoors | April 27 - May 4 |
| Cucumber | Direct sow outdoors | May 4 - May 11 |
| Zucchini | Direct sow outdoors | May 4 - May 11 |
| Pepper | Transplant outdoors | May 4 - May 11 |
| Tomato | Transplant outdoors | April 27 - May 4 |
| Bush beans | Re-sow every 14 days | last sowing August 7 |
| Carrot | Re-sow every 14 days | last sowing July 18 |
| Kale | Re-sow every 14 days | last sowing August 2 |
| Lettuce (leaf) | Re-sow every 14 days | last sowing August 12 |
| Radish | Re-sow every 14 days | last sowing September 6 |
| Spinach | Re-sow every 14 days | last sowing August 17 |
June
| Crop | What to do | Window |
|---|---|---|
| Bush beans | Re-sow every 14 days | last sowing August 7 |
| Carrot | Re-sow every 14 days may bolt in heat | last sowing July 18 |
| Kale | Re-sow every 14 days may bolt in heat | last sowing August 2 |
| Lettuce (leaf) | Re-sow every 14 days may bolt in heat | last sowing August 12 |
| Radish | Re-sow every 14 days may bolt in heat | last sowing September 6 |
| Spinach | Re-sow every 14 days may bolt in heat | last sowing August 17 |
July
| Crop | What to do | Window |
|---|---|---|
| Carrot | Direct sow for a fall crop | July 4 - July 18 |
| Kale | Direct sow for a fall crop | July 19 - August 2 |
| Lettuce (leaf) | Direct sow for a fall crop | July 29 - August 12 |
| Peas | Direct sow for a fall crop | July 14 - July 28 |
| Bush beans | Re-sow every 14 days | last sowing August 7 |
| Carrot | Re-sow every 14 days may bolt in heat | last sowing July 18 |
| Kale | Re-sow every 14 days may bolt in heat | last sowing August 2 |
| Lettuce (leaf) | Re-sow every 14 days may bolt in heat | last sowing August 12 |
| Radish | Re-sow every 14 days may bolt in heat | last sowing September 6 |
| Spinach | Re-sow every 14 days may bolt in heat | last sowing August 17 |
August
| Crop | What to do | Window |
|---|---|---|
| Kale | Direct sow for a fall crop | July 19 - August 2 |
| Lettuce (leaf) | Direct sow for a fall crop | July 29 - August 12 |
| Radish | Direct sow for a fall crop | August 23 - September 6 |
| Spinach | Direct sow for a fall crop | August 3 - August 17 |
| Bush beans | Re-sow every 14 days | last sowing August 7 |
| Lettuce (leaf) | Re-sow every 14 days may bolt in heat | last sowing August 12 |
| Radish | Re-sow every 14 days may bolt in heat | last sowing September 6 |
| Spinach | Re-sow every 14 days may bolt in heat | last sowing August 17 |
September
| Crop | What to do | Window |
|---|---|---|
| Radish | Direct sow for a fall crop | August 23 - September 6 |
Nothing to sow outdoors in January, October, November, December in zone 6. 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: March 23 - April 6 | August 23 - September 6 | September 6 | April 14 - April 22 |
| Lettuce (leaf) | - | Direct sow outdoors: March 23 - April 6 | July 29 - August 12 | August 12 | May 7 - May 17 |
| Spinach | - | Direct sow outdoors: March 9 - March 23 | August 3 - August 17 | August 17 | April 18 - April 28 |
| Bush beans | - | Direct sow outdoors: April 27 - May 4 | - | August 7 | June 16 - June 26 |
| Zucchini | - | Direct sow outdoors: May 4 - May 11 | - | - | June 18 - June 28 |
| Kale | March 9 - March 23 | Direct sow outdoors: March 23 - April 6 | July 19 - August 2 | August 2 | May 12 - May 27 |
| Peas | - | Direct sow outdoors: March 9 - March 23 | July 14 - July 28 | - | May 8 - May 18 |
| Carrot | - | Direct sow outdoors: March 30 - April 6 | July 4 - July 18 | July 18 | June 3 - June 18 |
| Cucumber | March 23 - March 30 | Direct sow outdoors: May 4 - May 11 | - | - | June 28 - July 8 |
| Tomato | February 23 - March 9 | Transplant outdoors: April 27 - May 4 | - | - | June 26 - July 21 |
| Pepper | February 9 - February 23 | Transplant outdoors: May 4 - May 11 | - | - | July 13 - August 2 |
| Onion | February 9 - February 23 | Transplant outdoors: March 23 - April 6 | - | - | July 1 - July 21 |
Growing in zone 6
Roughly six frost-free months. You can plant a spring crop, a summer crop, and a fall crop of the same bed.
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.
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 6 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 5 , zone 7 , zone 8 , zone 9 , zone 10 . Or use the interactive calendar to check a single month.
Zone 6 questions
When is the last frost in zone 6?
Zone 6 is conventionally taken to average its last spring frost around April 20 and its first fall frost around October 20, giving roughly 183 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 6?
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 20; 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 20.
Can I grow tomatoes in zone 6?
Yes. In zone 6, start tomato seed indoors 6 to 8 weeks before April 20 or buy a seedling, then transplant 1 to 2 weeks after the last frost once nights stay above 50°F. With 183 frost-free days there is comfortable room for any variety, including large beefsteak types.
How many harvests can I get in zone 6?
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 6?
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.