Gardening is mostly thought of as a hobby, a mere past time that people other than gardeners do not take seriously. The gardeners, on the other hand, recognize the care, effort and determination that gardening demands. For an amateur, who is only looking to try new stuff and has stumbled upon gardening, taking time out to make a proper calendar might sound like a lot of manual work. Professional gardeners, however, always make sure that they have each and every week of their year, planned according to the kind of plants that they are planning to grow. It is an excellent practice because it not only helps keep a record but also makes a person aware of the best timings to sow a particular plant’s seeds.
In this article, we will be taking a look at how to calculate and follow the nest planting dates for seeds according to a gardener’s region. It is imperative to keep in mind, the area while working out these planting dates for seeds. This is because colder and warmer regions differ in their best planting dates for seeds. So, if that gets mixed up, the seeds that you have been taking care of, might not germinate at all or might be too weak to carry on as a plant.
Step-1: Finding your Zone
As mentioned earlier, finding the area that you are living in is crucial. It will help you make the right gardening choices with regards to the best dates for planting seeds. To find out your zone, simply do a simple Google search with your zip code typed in, in the search box. You will quickly be told about your zone.
Step-2: Finding the last Frost Date
The last frost date, like the zone that you live in, can be easily searched for on the internet by entering your zip code in the search box of your browser. This is important because the whole calendar for seed plantation dates is based on the last frost date.
Step-3: Creating the Calendar
This part sounds terrifying but is simple once you get the hang of it. Once you know the last frost date in your zone, simply start counting back from the frost date, by making increments in weeks. For instance, if the last frost date in your zone is 20th May, the first week before the frost date will be from 13th to 20th May. Write these calculations down as you continue counting and keep marking the weeks with numbers; for example, the first week before last frosting date should be marked as Week 1, the second as Week 2 and so on.
Step-4: Finding the best dates for planting your seeds
If you are a professional gardener, you will already have enough experience to tell that which plant grows well if sown a particular period before the last frost date. If not, there is no need to panic. You can just ask your local plant nursery, or the store that you buy seeds from, for planting instructions. If they are as clueless as you are, do a little research on the plant using the Internet, and you will find your plant’s seeds’ ideal sowing period. Note all this information down as it will be of use in the next step.
Step-5: Dividing your seeds according to their best Plantation Dates
This is a very helpful practice as it will minimize the amount of time and effort in the whole planting process. Simply divide your seed packets or jars into categories according to their best plantation dates. For instance, if a plant tends to do well if planted 6-8 weeks before the last frosting date, write down Week 6-Week 8 on its packet or jar. Similarly, organize all of your seed collection until all of them fall under a week that is ideal for their plantation.
Now that you know which plant does well in which week before the last frost, all you have to do is keep checking the calendar and planting your seeds accordingly. It will require a little effort in the beginning but will become more of a habit within no time at all. And let us assure you, the satisfaction that you will get from the bloom of all those buds will be worth all the effort.
Best Dates for planting seeds this June, July, and August
Best dates for planting seeds this June, July and August as per the moon calendar are given in the table that follows. These times are ideal for all plantation zones although weather conditions corresponding to the zone that you live in should be kept in mind.
|Date||Ideal Plants for Plantation|
|8th and 9th June||The ideal time to plant late root crops. Plant vine crops like beans, peas and cucumbers on these days.|
|16th, 17th, and 19th June||These days are ideal to sow flower beds and flower gardens. Crops that grow above ground will also tend to do well if planted on these dates.
Plant tomatoes, beans, peppers, corn, cotton, and aboveground crops on these most fruitful days.
|24th and 25th June||Ideal dates to sow grains and forage crops. Planting flowers will also be a good choice. Plant peas, beans, tomatoes, and other fall crops that grow above garden.|
|26th and 27th June||Ideal dates for planting seedbeds. Lettuce, cabbage, cauliflower, collards, and other leafy vegetables will thrive if planted on these dates.|
|1st and 2nd July||Plant beets, carrots, salsify, Irish potatoes, and other root crops on these dates.|
|5th and 6th July||Plant beets, carrots, radishes, salsify, turnips, peanuts, and other root crops. Vine crops grown on these dates will also be healthy.|
|15th July||Plant corn, cotton, okra, beans, peppers, eggplant.|
|21st and 22nd July||Plant flowers, peas, beans, tomatoes. Crops that grow above ground will be a good planting option on these dates.|
|23rd, 24th and 25th July||Plant leafy vegetables like cabbage, lettuce, cauliflower, mustard greens.|
|28th and 29th July||Plant crops that grow above ground.|
|1st and 2nd August||Plant beans, peas, and cucumbers. Also plant root plants on these dates|