The Struggle
Trying to explain when to prepare your garden, start seeds inside, and plant outside is so confusing! That is because the timing is different for each location. When to plant is all based on your “last frost date”. This is the average date of the last spring frost in your area. After this date it is generally safe to transplant frost-sensitive plants and seeds.
DO YOU FEEL LIKE YOU’RE IN A CHARLIE BROWN CARTOON, AND I JUST SAID “WAH, WAP, WAH, WO, WAH?” That’s because this is CONFUSING!!! Don’t worry, I’ve made it simple!
A Simple, Easy Way
In hopes of making it simpler, I have created the Planting By Color system. It’s SO EASY!!! All you do is find your color, sign up for my newsletter, and you will get automatic reminders of which tasks can/should be completed each week.
Keep in mind that these groups include a 2-week span, and are based on average temperatures. You may still need to adjust your planting times depending on weather–if you’ve had an extended winter, you may want to wait longer. If you’ve had a mild winter and an early spring, you may want to plant a little sooner.
Find Your Color By Location
Here is a list of locations–these are weather stations, not necessarily the largest cities or towns. Many times you’ll see AP, which means airport. Look through the entire section for your state and find the CLOSEST location with the MOST SIMILAR weather patterns.
Now go here to signup for the newsletter!
Find Your Color By Frost Date
| Spring Color | Dates | Spring Color | Dates |
|---|---|---|---|
| White Group | February 14-28 | Yellow Group | April 16-30 |
| Pink Group | March 1-15 | Green Group | May 1-15 |
| Red Group | March 16-31 | Blue Group | May 16-31 |
| Orange Group | April 1-15 | Violet Group | June 1-15 |
| Fall Color | Dates | Fall Color | Dates |
|---|---|---|---|
| Purple Group | September 16-30 | Navy Group | November 1-15 |
| Maroon Group | October 1-15 | Olive Group | November 16-30 |
| Brown Group | October 16-31 | Goldenrod Group | December 1-15 |
Go here for a printable list of frost dates and colors.
Now go here to signup for the newsletter!
Happy gardening!
At the bottom of each newsletter is a link that allows you to edit your color groups. Thanks!
I recently moved from El Paso, TX (red group) to Lawton, OK (orange group. How do I change my newsletter?
Thanks. I love your site. I tried gardening for the first time last year and had huge success
It is in pdf format, and it is in color. I’m not sure how it would work on the Nook. It is intended to function as a workbook that you print out.
Is your ebook compatible with the NOOK color?
Heather–I don’t have plans to add colors. Your best bet is to get the e-book–it comes with a “custom” schedule that outlines the 15 weeks, and you fill in the dates.
your dates do not seem to correlate with the southern hemisphere. Any chance you will be adding some colors that relate to us down here? I am in Melbourne Australia and from my research my first fall frost is in may and last spring from in early sept. I am trying to set up my first SFG and any help I can get would be marvelous!
Hi Emily, Upon further discussion with friends in our area, I’ve discovered that it was wishful thinking to say that we are in the “blue group” for our spring frost dates. Would it be possible to change my newsletter to the “VIOLET group”? And if so, could you send me any previous newsletters which have gone out to that group? I absolutely love your website and have already recommended it to a number of friends and family! Thanks so much. – Randi
Thank you so much.
Terri–Done! http://www.mysquarefootgarden.net/frost_dates.html