What It Means
A home garden is a plot, a raised bed or a few containers at your own home where you grow food for your household. Most vegetables need a spot that gets at least 6 hours of direct sun, and the timing of each crop depends on your area's average last spring frost date. Cool-season crops such as lettuce and peas go in before that date, while warm-season crops such as tomatoes and peppers wait until after it.
Try It: When Does This Crop Go In?
Pick a crop to see its season group, when it goes in, and how much sun it wants. Based on Penn State and University of Maryland Extension guides.
Cool-season
Warm-season
Several weeks, or up to about two months, ahead of your last spring frost
After your last spring frost, never before
Tolerates partial shade, about 4 to 6 hours of direct light
Likes full sun and tolerates partial shade
6 to 8 hours of direct sun for best growth
A reasonable match. Leafy greens like this one cope with partial shade better than fruiting crops do.
This crop wants more sun than that spot gets. Put lettuce or spinach there instead, or grow this one in a container you can move into the sun.
How It Sounds at Home
- "The tomatoes finally came in."
- "We've got more zucchini than we can eat."
- "Grab some lettuce from the garden for dinner."
The Breakdown
How to start one
- Find your sunniest spot close to a hose or tap. USDA's community garden guide asks for at least 6 hours of direct sun, and Penn State Extension says most vegetables do best with 6 to 8.
- Start small. One raised bed or a few large containers is easier to keep watered and weeded than a big plot.
- Look up your average last spring frost date. Many state extension services publish a planting calendar built around it.
- Pick crops your household already eats, then sort them into cool-season and warm-season.
- Plant cool-season crops first, several weeks or up to about two months ahead of the last frost. Hold warm-season crops until that date has passed.
- Pick often, and rinse everything under running water before it goes on a plate.
Which crops go in when
| Cool-season: before the last frost | Warm-season: after the last frost |
|---|---|
| Lettuce, spinach, kale | Tomatoes, peppers, eggplant |
| Peas, radishes, carrots | Beans, cucumbers, zucchini |
| Broccoli, cabbage, onions | Corn, melons, winter squash |
Source: Penn State Extension, "Cool-season vs. Warm-season Vegetables."
Short version to try today. Set one large container of potting mix in the sunniest place you have and plant a single crop that suits the season: lettuce in early spring, or a tomato once your last frost has passed.
Good to Know
Food from your own garden needs washing too. The FDA says to rinse all fruits and vegetables under running water before you prepare or eat them, scrub firm ones like cucumbers and melons with a clean brush, and skip soap, detergent and produce washes. Soil and water can carry harmful bacteria, and washing lowers the amount without removing all of it.
If you add perennials such as fruit bushes or herbs that come back each year, check the USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map. USDA updated it in November 2023, and you can look up your zone by ZIP code.
FAQ
How much sun does a vegetable garden need?
At least 6 hours of direct sun a day, according to USDA's community garden guide, and 6 to 8 hours for most vegetables, according to Penn State Extension. Leafy greens are more forgiving: University of Maryland Extension says lettuce tolerates partial shade of about 4 to 6 hours.
When should I plant my vegetable garden?
It depends on your area's average last spring frost date. Cool-season crops like peas and lettuce can go in several weeks, or up to about two months, ahead of it. Warm-season crops like tomatoes should wait until it has passed.
Do I need to wash vegetables from my own garden?
Yes. The FDA says to wash all produce, homegrown included, under running water, and not to use soap or detergent. Harmful bacteria in soil or water can end up on what you grow.
Do It in Buhata
Tasks and Reminders
Add "Plant tomatoes" to Tasks in Buhata, dated just after your area's last frost, and set a Reminder so your phone pings you that week.
Open BuhataRelated Terms and Categories
- Herb garden
A small group of cooking herbs grown at home, in the ground, in containers or indoors on a sunny windowsill, to cut fresh for meals.
Sources
USDA NRCS, "Community Garden Guide: Vegetable Garden Planning"; Penn State Extension, "Planting and Growing a Home Garden"; Penn State Extension, "Cool-season vs. Warm-season Vegetables"; University of Illinois Extension, "Starting a Garden: Cool-Season Vegetables"; University of Illinois Extension, "When to Plant"; University of Maryland Extension, "Growing Lettuce in a Home Garden"; USDA ARS, "2023 USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map"; FDA, "7 Tips for Cleaning Fruits, Vegetables"
- www.nrcs.usda.gov/plantmaterials/mipmcot9407.pdf
- extension.psu.edu/planting-in-sun-or-shade
- extension.psu.edu/cool-season-vs-warm-season-vegetables
- extension.illinois.edu/blogs/good-growing/2020-03-26-starting-garden-cool-season-vegetables-and-my-top-5-cool-season-crops
- extension.illinois.edu/gardening/when-plant
- extension.umd.edu/resource/growing-lettuce-home-garden
- planthardiness.ars.usda.gov
- www.fda.gov/consumers/consumer-updates/7-tips-cleaning-fruits-vegetables
Last updated .