Spring in the Southeast doesn’t arrive — it lurches. One week it’s 75°F and you’re in shorts. The next week there’s frost on your windshield. And somewhere in that chaos, you need to get a garden planted at exactly the right time.
This is your zone-by-zone spring planting calendar for the Southeast, covering zones 6b through 9a. No guessing, no “plant after danger of frost” vagueness. Actual dates, actual crops, actual sequence.
The Spring Planting Sequence
Every spring garden follows the same basic order, just shifted by zone:
- Hardy cool-season crops (tolerate frost): peas, spinach, kale, onions
- Semi-hardy cool-season crops (tolerate light frost): lettuce, broccoli, cabbage, carrots
- Warm-season crops (frost kills them): tomatoes, peppers, squash, beans
- Hot-season crops (need warm soil): okra, sweet potatoes, melons, Southern peas
Your zone determines when each phase starts. Let’s break it down.
Zone 9a: Coastal South Georgia, Extreme Southeast
Last frost: February 10–25
You’re practically subtropical. Your spring starts before most of the country finishes winter.
January:
- Direct sow peas, spinach, lettuce, radishes, carrots, beets
- Transplant broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower, kale
- Plant onion sets and transplants
- Start tomato and pepper seeds indoors (8 weeks before transplant)
February:
- Continue successive plantings of lettuce, radishes
- Direct sow Swiss chard, turnips
- Mid-to-late February: transplant tomatoes, peppers (with frost protection available)
- Start sweet potato slips indoors
March:
- Direct sow squash, cucumbers, beans, corn
- Transplant remaining tomatoes and peppers
- Plant okra after soil hits 65°F (usually mid-March)
- Plant watermelon and cantaloupe seeds or transplants
April:
- Plant sweet potato slips
- Plant Southern peas
- Last chance for spring bean and squash plantings
- Cool-season crops finishing up — harvest everything before heat arrives
Pro Tip: Zone 9a gardeners, your cool-season window is short. Broccoli planted after February 1st is racing against 80°F days in April. Start early or skip it and plant heavily in fall planting instead.
Zone 8b: Southern Georgia, Coastal South Carolina, Gulf Coast Alabama
Last frost: February 25–March 10
February:
- Direct sow peas (Sugar Snap, Oregon Sugar Pod), spinach, kale
- Transplant onion sets
- Start tomato and pepper seeds indoors
- Direct sow lettuce, carrots, radishes, beets
March:
- First two weeks: transplant broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower
- Mid-March: transplant tomatoes and peppers (after last frost)
- Direct sow beans, squash, cucumbers
- Start okra if soil is warm enough (65°F+)
April:
- Plant corn (Silver Queen, Peaches and Cream — need 60°F soil)
- Plant sweet potato slips (late April)
- Direct sow Southern peas, lima beans
- Plant watermelon and cantaloupe
- Succession plant squash and beans
May:
- Plant okra if not already in (it likes it hot)
- Final succession plantings of beans
- Mulch everything heavily — summer is coming
- Start monitoring for squash vine borers (they emerge when the soil warms)
Zone 8a: Coastal North Carolina, Most of South Carolina, Southern Alabama
Last frost: March 10–25
February:
- Direct sow peas, spinach, kale outdoors (these are hardy)
- Start tomato, pepper, broccoli seeds indoors
- Plant onion sets and transplants
March:
- First half: transplant broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower, kale
- Direct sow carrots (Danvers Half Long, Nantes), lettuce, beets, turnips, radishes
- Second half (after last frost): transplant tomatoes (Better Boy, Solar Fire, Cherokee Purple)
- Direct sow beans (Contender, Provider)
April:
- Transplant peppers
- Direct sow squash, cucumbers, corn
- Plant okra (Clemson Spineless) once soil is 65°F+
- Plant sweet potato slips (late April)
- Direct sow Southern peas
May:
- Plant melons if not done
- Plant sweet potato slips (early May)
- Succession plant beans and squash
- Harvest spring lettuce and spinach before they bolt
Zone 7b: Upstate South Carolina, Central Alabama, Nashville Area, Parts of Virginia
Last frost: March 20–April 5
This is where timing starts getting tricky. You’re warm enough for a real Southern garden but cold enough that a late frost can wreck early plantings.
Early March:
- Direct sow peas, spinach, kale, onion sets
- Transplant broccoli and cabbage (with row cover available for hard freezes)
- Direct sow lettuce, radishes, carrots
Late March:
- Continue cool-season plantings
- Start hardening off tomato and pepper transplants
April (after last frost, typically first week):
- Transplant tomatoes (don’t rush this — soil should be 60°F minimum)
- Transplant peppers (wait until soil is 65°F)
- Direct sow beans, squash, cucumbers
- Direct sow corn (Bodacious, Incredible — 60°F soil)
May:
- Plant okra (early-to-mid May)
- Plant sweet potato slips (mid-May, soil must be 65°F)
- Plant Southern peas and lima beans
- Plant melons (late May for zones 7b)
- Succession plant beans every 2 weeks
Pro Tip: In zone 7b, keep floating row covers or frost blankets handy through mid-April. A forecast of 33°F on April 8th isn’t unusual, and a single frost will kill unprotected tomato transplants.
Zone 7a: Piedmont North Carolina, Northern Alabama, Middle Tennessee, Central Virginia
Last frost: April 1–15
March:
- Direct sow peas (early March — they handle frost)
- Transplant broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower (mid-March, with protection)
- Direct sow spinach, kale, lettuce, carrots, beets, radishes
- Plant onion sets and transplants
April:
- Mid-April (after last frost): transplant tomatoes and peppers
- Direct sow beans, squash, cucumbers (late April)
- Continue harvesting cool-season crops
May:
- Direct sow corn, okra, Southern peas
- Plant sweet potato slips (mid-May)
- Plant melon transplants (late May)
- First succession planting of beans and squash
June:
- Final bean and squash succession plantings (early June)
- Harvest garlic (planted previous fall)
- Mulch heavily — temperatures climbing
- Begin planning fall garden (yes, already)
Zone 6b: Western North Carolina, Mountain Tennessee, Parts of Virginia
Last frost: April 15–30
You’re the cool end of the Southeast. Your spring is shorter, your window is tighter, and patience is essential.
Late March–Early April:
- Direct sow peas, spinach, kale
- Transplant onion sets
- Start tomato and pepper seeds indoors (if not already started)
Mid-April:
- Transplant broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower
- Direct sow carrots, beets, lettuce, radishes
- Continue pea plantings
Early-to-Mid May (after last frost):
- Transplant tomatoes (use Wall-o-Water or similar season extenders if planting before May 10)
- Transplant peppers (late May — they’re more cold-sensitive than tomatoes)
- Direct sow beans, squash, cucumbers
Late May–June:
- Plant corn, okra, Southern peas
- Plant sweet potato slips (June — needs warm soil)
- Melon transplants (early June)
- Succession plant beans
Pro Tip: Zone 6b mountain gardeners, your advantage is summer. While the rest of the Southeast is battling 95°F heat stress, you’re growing tomatoes in 80°F bliss through August. Use it.
Indoor Seed Starting Schedule
If you start your own transplants (and you should — it saves money and gives you better variety choices), here’s the countdown:
8–10 weeks before last frost:
- Tomatoes
- Peppers (they’re slow — start these first)
- Eggplant
6–8 weeks before last frost:
- Broccoli
- Cabbage
- Cauliflower
- Kale
- Collards
4–6 weeks before last frost:
- Cucumbers (if transplanting)
- Squash (if transplanting — direct sow is usually better)
- Melons
Harden off all transplants for 7–10 days before planting outside. Start with an hour of outdoor time in shade, gradually increasing sun exposure and time outside each day.
Common Mistakes
Planting tomatoes on the first warm day. We get it. It was 78°F on March 12th and you were excited. But soil temperature matters more than air temperature, and a 40°F night the following week will set those plants back three weeks. Wait for your date.
Skipping cool-season crops. If you only grow tomatoes and peppers, you’re missing 2–3 months of production. Peas and lettuce in February (zones 8+) give you fresh food while you’re waiting for tomato weather.
Not succession planting. One planting of lettuce gives you two weeks of salads. Planting a new row every 10 days gives you salads from February through May. Same amount of total seed, way more food.
Forgetting to mulch before summer. Get 3–4 inches of mulch on everything by late May. It conserves moisture, suppresses weeds, and keeps soil temperatures more moderate. Pine straw is free in most of the Southeast.
Put It All Together
A productive spring garden in the Southeast isn’t about planting everything on one weekend in April. It’s a rolling sequence that starts weeks (or months) before your last frost and continues through June. Get the timing right for your zone, and you’ll be harvesting from March through November.
Our Southeast Vegetable Gardening Guide includes printable planting calendars for every zone from 6b to 9a, seed starting schedules, and month-by-month task lists. It’s the full playbook for every season — not just spring. [Get your copy here →]
📚 Want the complete guide? Southeast Vegetable Gardening covers everything you need — planting calendars, variety picks, soil strategies, and more — all tailored to your region. Browse the Harvest Home Guides series →