What to plant in May
May means something very different in Minnesota and in Texas. Below is what the month looks like in each USDA zone, then a dated list for each state.
May by USDA zone
Counted from each zone’s typical frost dates. Your own frost dates matter more than your zone number - the state pages below use state averages.
| Zone | Frost dates | Crops to sow or plant | Including |
|---|---|---|---|
| Zone 1 (May dates) | Jun 15 – Aug 20 | 67 | mache (corn salad), pea, spinach, green onion / scallion, arugula |
| Zone 2 (May dates) | Jun 1 – Sep 1 | 71 | mache (corn salad), pea, spinach, green onion / scallion, arugula |
| Zone 3 (May dates) | May 15 – Sep 15 | 91 | arugula, beet, fava bean (broad bean), green onion / scallion, mizuna |
| Zone 4 (May dates) | May 10 – Sep 25 | 84 | carrot, chervil, endive & escarole, kohlrabi, lettuce |
| Zone 5 (May dates) | Apr 30 – Oct 5 | 69 | fennel (bulb), globe artichoke, lemon balm, mint, tarragon |
| Zone 6 (May dates) | Apr 15 – Oct 15 | 58 | ground cherry, new zealand spinach, peanut, pumpkin, rosemary |
| Zone 7 (May dates) | Apr 5 – Oct 25 | 41 | basil, bitter melon, cantaloupe / muskmelon, chayote, cucamelon |
| Zone 8 (May dates) | Mar 20 – Nov 5 | 9 | planning and seed ordering |
| Zone 9 (May dates) | Feb 20 – Nov 30 | 9 | planning and seed ordering |
| Zone 10 (May dates) | Jan 30 – Dec 15 | 9 | planning and seed ordering |
May planting lists by state (50)
Alabama9 crops to sow or plantAlaska91 crops to sow or plantArizona9 crops to sow or plantArkansas40 crops to sow or plantCalifornia9 crops to sow or plantColorado84 crops to sow or plantConnecticut66 crops to sow or plantDelaware58 crops to sow or plantDistrict of Columbia54 crops to sow or plantFlorida9 crops to sow or plantGeorgia9 crops to sow or plantIdaho84 crops to sow or plantIllinois58 crops to sow or plantIndiana66 crops to sow or plantIowa66 crops to sow or plantKansas58 crops to sow or plantKentucky58 crops to sow or plantLouisiana9 crops to sow or plantMaine89 crops to sow or plantMaryland58 crops to sow or plantMassachusetts66 crops to sow or plantMichigan84 crops to sow or plantMinnesota84 crops to sow or plantMississippi9 crops to sow or plantMissouri58 crops to sow or plantMontana91 crops to sow or plantNebraska69 crops to sow or plantNevada58 crops to sow or plantNew Hampshire89 crops to sow or plantNew Jersey58 crops to sow or plantNew Mexico58 crops to sow or plantNew York78 crops to sow or plantNorth Carolina41 crops to sow or plantNorth Dakota90 crops to sow or plantOhio66 crops to sow or plantOklahoma27 crops to sow or plantOregon58 crops to sow or plantPennsylvania78 crops to sow or plantRhode Island66 crops to sow or plantSouth Carolina9 crops to sow or plantSouth Dakota84 crops to sow or plantTennessee54 crops to sow or plantTexas9 crops to sow or plantUtah84 crops to sow or plantVermont89 crops to sow or plantVirginia58 crops to sow or plantWashington58 crops to sow or plantWest Virginia84 crops to sow or plantWisconsin84 crops to sow or plantWyoming87 crops to sow or plant
More states are added regularly. In the meantime every state has a full-year planting calendar, and you can get dates for your own ZIP code there.