Planting guide

What to plant in Zone 6 in March

USDA Zone 6 · US Northern Hemisphere March

March in zone 6, from St. Louis and Kansas City to Pittsburgh, Boston and Denver, is the month the spring garden starts in earnest. Average last frosts fall from mid April to early May, so most of the work is indoors, with the first hardy sowings outside as soon as the ground thaws and dries.

Plant now

Peppers and eggplant (seed, indoors)

Sow early in the month, 8-10 weeks before your last frost; they germinate best on a heat mat.

Broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower (seed, indoors)

Sow early in the month for transplants that go out in mid April.

Tomatoes (seed, indoors, late month)Solanum lycopersicum

Sow in the last week of March or early April, 6-8 weeks before your last frost. Earlier sowings get leggy before it is warm enough to plant.

Peas and spinach (outdoors, once soil is workable)

Both germinate in soil as cool as 40°F (4°C). Late March is typical for zone 6.

Asparagus and rhubarb crowns

Plant as soon as the soil can be worked. Both are perennial, so pick a permanent spot.

Bare-root fruit trees and berry bushes

Plant while dormant, from late March into April.

Timing notes

  • USDA zones measure the coldest winter night, not frost dates. Look up the average last frost for your own town and count back from it.
  • Soil is workable when a squeezed handful crumbles instead of staying in a wet lump. Digging wet soil damages its structure for the whole season.
  • Frost cloth or a cold frame buys two to three weeks at the start of the season for lettuce, spinach and brassica transplants.
Frost dates and a seed-starting schedule for your ZIP code Free calculator from NOAA station records: last spring frost, first fall frost, and what to start each week. ← All planting guides