Succession planting calculator
Small sowings, often, for a steady harvest instead of a glut. Pick a crop and PlotPlan lists every sowing date between your frost dates.
Typical last spring frost Apr 13 · first fall frost Oct 27. Adjust
How much to sow each time
Sow only what you can eat in the two or three weeks that batch stays at its best. For a household of two that is often a single square foot of lettuce (4 plants), half a square of radishes, or 2–3 squares of bush beans.
Sow small amounts every two weeks. Heat above about 80°F makes it bolt and turn bitter.
Three ways to succession plant
- Same crop, staggered: the calculator above.
- Different varieties, one day: sow early, mid and late sweet corn or carrots together; they mature weeks apart.
- Follow-on crops: when spring peas finish, plant fall broccoli; after garlic, sow beans. See fall windows on the planting calendar.
Questions gardeners ask
What is succession planting?
Sowing small batches of the same crop every one to three weeks, or following one crop with another in the same space, so you harvest steadily through the season instead of all at once.
Which crops are best for succession planting?
Quick crops you harvest once: lettuce, radishes, spinach, arugula, cilantro, bush beans, beets, carrots, kohlrabi and sweet corn. Crops that keep producing, like tomatoes, peppers and zucchini, don't need it.
How often should I sow lettuce?
Every 14 days in spring and fall. In hot midsummer, switch to heat-tolerant varieties, sow in partial shade, or pause, because lettuce seed germinates poorly above about 80°F.
When is the last date I can sow?
Count back from your first fall frost by the crop's days to maturity. Frost-hardy crops such as spinach and kale can be sown a little later because they keep growing through light frosts.
What is relay or follow-on planting?
Replacing a finished crop with a different one: garlic out in July, then a fall sowing of beans or carrots in the same square; early peas followed by fall broccoli.