Zone 7b planting guide
Mid-Atlantic and city heat islands. Long enough for real flavor crops. Hot enough to bolt cilantro overnight.
- Last spring frost
- Mar 25
- First fall frost
- Nov 8
- Winter low
- 5 to 10°F
The trap
One sowing of cilantro in May and calling the plant a failure.
What actually finishes
Peppers that actually ripen. Succession greens. A fall garden that is not an afterthought.
This week in Zone 7b
Last plantings
Radish, spinach, and garlic. Anything slow will not finish.
- Music
Point up, 2 inches deep, 6 inches apart, mulch. This is the crop that works while you rest.
Crops for this zone
- Tomatoes
- Peppers
- Lettuce
- Basil
- Zucchini
- Beans
- Kale
- Spinach
- Radish
- Carrots
- Peas
- Cilantro
- Cucumber
- Sunflower
- Zinnia
- Garlic
- Arugula
- Broccoli
- Swiss chard
- Beets
- Parsley
- Dill
- Marigold
- Winter squash
- Onions
- Potatoes
Cities in Zone 7b
Year at a glance
January
Start peppers indoors. Order the last of the seed. Do not sow outdoors.
February
Start tomatoes indoors. Cool crops can be sown under cover or in a cold frame.
March
Typical last-frost month. Harden off. Direct-sow radish, lettuce, peas if you have not.
April
Warm soil. Beans, squash, basil, zinnias, cucumbers. Transplant tomatoes.
May
Tend and harvest. A second sowing of beans if the math works. Plan the fall bed.
June
Tend and harvest. A second sowing of beans if the math works. Plan the fall bed.
July
Tend and harvest. A second sowing of beans if the math works. Plan the fall bed.
August
Tend and harvest. A second sowing of beans if the math works. Plan the fall bed.
September
Fall greens in now if you have not. Count days. Skip new long-season fruit.
October
Last radish and spinach. Prep garlic ground. Harvest the tender things.
November · now
Typical first-frost month. Plant garlic. Mulch. Take notes while you remember the year.
December
Rest. Inventory leftover seed. Do not buy 40 tomato varieties.
The sow list
A note when it is time to sow
Seasonal, not daily. We will send what to start in your zone, and skip the rest of the year.
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