Question: How do I know when I should be planting various types of vegetables? Don’t their planting dates vary a good bit?

Answer: Yes, they do, and people make their biggest vegetable-growing mistakes by planting at the wrong times. You want to meet your crops’ temperature requirements above all else. For example, English peas and onions need to be planted 6 to 8 weeks before the last killing freeze, while southern peas and okra should never be planted prior to one month after the last freeze. Let’s group the plants as best we can. Those that are planted 4 to 8 weeks before the average date of the last killing freeze include asparagus, English peas, onions and potatoes. Those that should be planted 2 to 4 weeks prior to the last killing freeze date include lettuce, spinach, beets, turnips, broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower, Brussels sprouts, carrots, kale and radishes. Those that are planted on or after the last freeze date include tomatoes, beans, peppers, eggplant, corn, melons and cucumbers. One month after the last freeze, plant okra, southern peas and sweet potatoes.