Zone 7 Planting Calendar: What to Plant, Month by Month

Zone 7 is where American gardening gets generous. This belt — Virginia and most of the Mid-Atlantic, Kentucky and most of Tennessee, most of Oklahoma, the Texas Panhandle, the mid-elevation Southwest around Albuquerque, and the inland Northwest around Spokane and Boise (plus, since the 2023 map update, cities like Boston, Pittsburgh, and St. Louis) — sees winter lows of just 0–10°F. The last frost clears out between early and late April, the first one holds off until mid-October to early November (mid-November only in big-city cores), and in between you get a frost-free season of roughly 180–210 days. Going the other way, Raleigh, Charlotte, Memphis, and Chattanooga moved up from Zone 7 into 8a on the 2023 map — they're covered in our Zone 8 calendar.

That long runway changes how the year works. In Zone 6 and colder, fall planting is a bonus round; in Zone 7 it's a full second season. The gardeners who get the most out of this zone think in two gardens a year — a spring one and a fall one — with a hot July intermission in between. Look up your exact frost dates by ZIP code once (the free Old Farmer's Almanac tool) and shift our ranges to match; how the frost-date system works is in our one-chart planting guide.

Zone 7 at a glance

February — the head start

• Start indoors: broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower, onions, and head lettuce early in the month; they'll be garden-ready by late March.
• Direct sow (late February, warmer 7b pockets): peas and spinach — Zone 7 soils are often workable while Zone 6 is still frozen solid.
• Prep beds on mild days: a February afternoon at a waist-high bed beats a muddy March morning on your knees.

March — the cool-season sprint

• Direct sow all month: lettuce, radishes, carrots, beets, turnips, kale, chard, arugula.
• Plant potatoes mid-to-late March — the old Southern habit of planting "around St. Patrick's Day" fits most of Zone 7.
• Start tomatoes indoors in the first half of March (6–8 weeks ahead of their late-April date); peppers and eggplant right behind them.
• Transplant those February brassicas out from late March under a light row cover.

April — the handoff month

• Frost danger fades from about April 5 in 7b to late April in colder 7a spots — confirm your ZIP-code date and watch the 10-day forecast.
• Direct sow once soil passes 60°F: bush and pole beans, sweet corn, cucumbers, summer squash — usually from mid-April.
• Transplant tomatoes in the second half of April. Zone 7's classic mistake is the opposite of Zone 6's: not frost, but impatience with cold soil. A tomato set in 55°F dirt just sits there.

May — the warm-season main event

• Peppers, eggplant, melons, and winter squash go in as nights settle above 55°F.
• Zone 7 privileges: okra and sweet potato slips — marginal gambles up north — thrive here. Plant both in May and they'll carry you through the hottest weeks.
• Last comfortable month for lettuce in full sun; move salad crops to afternoon shade now.

June — heat management

• Finish planting melons, squash, and the last spring succession of beans by mid-month.
• Mulch deep (2–3 inches) — June mulch is July's watering plan.
• Lettuce and spinach bolt in the heat; don't fight it. Swap salads to heat-lovers (chard, Malabar spinach) or take the month off from greens.

July — the intermission

• The cool-season garden pauses; the gardener should too. Water deeply, harvest daily, and stay out of the afternoon sun.
• Start fall brassicas in trays (broccoli, cabbage, collards) somewhere bright but shaded mid-month — they transplant out in late August.
• Last call for a fast round of bush beans in the final week.

August — the second season begins

In early-to-mid August, direct sow carrots, beets, and turnips for fall, and set out brassica transplants in the last week (shade them for their first few days). Zone 7's fall window is wide — our What to Plant in August guide covers it zone by zone.

September — a full planting month

Here's the Zone 7 luxury Zone 6 doesn't get: September is a genuine sowing month, not a last call.

• All month: lettuce, spinach, radishes, arugula, Asian greens, turnips.
• Skip fall peas — Virginia Tech doesn't recommend them in any zone. If you want to gamble, snow peas sown by mid-August have the best odds.
• Keep new sowings evenly moist; September soil is still summer-warm.

October — garlic month

• Plant garlic from mid-October into early November — University of Kentucky Extension calls October and early November the best time, and Virginia Tech's planting guide gives October for both 7a and 7b. Cloves root through the fall here and size up beautifully. Full timing, depth, and a no-bend method: when to plant garlic.
• Sow spinach and hardy lettuce under row cover into mid-month; they'll feed you through Thanksgiving and often beyond.
• The first frost usually arrives late in the month — an old bed sheet over the salad bed on cold nights keeps everything rolling.

November — wrapping up

• Last call for garlic in the first week or two — mid-November at the very latest, and only in mild 7b spots.
• Skip fall onion sets: Virginia Tech and Kentucky extension both treat sets as a spring crop, and fall-planted sets tend to bolt.
• Covered kale, collards, spinach, and carrots keep producing into December.

The no-bend view of Zone 7

Two seasons a year means twice the trips to the garden — which makes comfortable working height twice as valuable here:

• A waist-high bed turns the February and November edges of the season into pleasant work — no kneeling on cold, wet ground during the very months Zone 7 hands you for free.
• Containers bridge the July gap: pots of chard and herbs by a shaded door keep the kitchen supplied while the salad bed rests.
• Our raised bed height guide and container guide cover the setups.

Frequently asked questions

When should I plant tomatoes in Zone 7?

Transplant in the second half of April for most of the zone — after your last frost date and once soil reaches 60°F. Start seeds indoors in early-to-mid March. Gamblers in 7b sometimes plant in early April under protection; the calendar gains little and the risk is real.

Can I grow okra and sweet potatoes in Zone 7?

Yes — comfortably, and that's a genuine Zone 7 advantage over cooler zones. Plant okra from seed and sweet potato slips in May once nights stay above 55°F. Both shrug off the July heat that stalls everything else.

When do I start a fall garden in Zone 7?

Start brassica seedlings in trays in mid-July, transplant them in late August, and direct sow roots in early-to-mid August and greens right through September. Fall is a full second season here, not an afterthought.

Can I grow lettuce through the Zone 7 summer?

Not easily. July and August heat makes most lettuce bolt and turn bitter fast. Slow-bolting oakleaf types under shade cloth can stretch it through June; after that, take a salad break (or grow chard in afternoon shade) and re-sow lettuce in late August and September, when it excels.

When should I plant garlic in Zone 7?

Mid-October into early November (mid-November at the latest in mild 7b spots), while the soil is still workable. Zone 7 winters are ideal for garlic — cold enough to vernalize the cloves, mild enough for strong root growth. The full how-to is in our garlic planting guide.

Sources

• Virginia Tech Cooperative Extension — Home Garden Vegetable Planting Guide
• The Old Farmer's Almanac — Frost Dates Calculator
• USDA Agricultural Research Service — Plant Hardiness Zone Map (2023)
• University of Kentucky Cooperative Extension — Home Vegetable Gardening in Kentucky (ID-128)
• University of Maryland Extension — When to Plant Vegetables
• University of Tennessee Extension — Garlic for the Tennessee Vegetable Garden (D75)