Regional guide

Central Maryland Planting Calendar Vegetable Garden

A UMD Extension Central Maryland planting-calendar guide for frost assumptions, warm-soil crops, successions, transplants, and crop windows.

Regional timing

Current regional planting plan

A UMD Extension Central Maryland planting-calendar guide for frost assumptions, warm-soil crops, successions, transplants, and crop windows.

Source-backed timing UMD Extension Vegetable Planting Calendar

Central Maryland 183 frost-free days

May 1 last frost spring release Oct 31 first frost fall limit

UMD Extension says its vegetable planting calendars were created for Central Maryland; Western, Northern, and Southern Maryland, and the Eastern Shore need timeline adjustments.
Maryland frost-free growing days range from 155 in far Western Maryland to 230 on the Lower Eastern Shore, so this Central Maryland guide is not a statewide date rule.
The Central Maryland calendar is based on a last frost around May 1 and a first frost around October 31.

Catalog priority: 25 priority crops
Climate checks: 4 climate signals
Timing basis: Using Central Maryland dates

Source-backed timing May 1 last frost and October 31 first frost from the Central Maryland calendar assumptions.

Western, northern, Southern Maryland, and Eastern Shore sites can shift from this Central Maryland baseline.

Crop priority Provider Bush Bean leads the catalog examples

Provider Bush Bean, Detroit Dark Red Beet, Waltham 29 Broccoli, Long Island Improved Brussels Sprouts

Next local check Use the UMD calendar ranges as the period when each vegetable can be planted and expected to succeed, then plant small batches every two weeks for sustained harvest.

Treat direct-sown plants as the default where the calendar lists direct seeding; crops with an asterisk may also be transplanted for an earlier harvest.

Calendar Convert regional timing into dated sowing, transplant, and harvest jobs. Frost dates Keep hardiness zone context separate from local first and last frost dates. All regions Compare this guide with the broader regional atlas. Delaware Frost University of Delaware Cooperative Extension guide for frost-probability planning, succession rows, fall crops, and tender-crop timing in Delaware.

Climate signals

UMD Extension says its vegetable planting calendars were created for Central Maryland; Western, Northern, and Southern Maryland, and the Eastern Shore need timeline adjustments.
Maryland frost-free growing days range from 155 in far Western Maryland to 230 on the Lower Eastern Shore, so this Central Maryland guide is not a statewide date rule.
The Central Maryland calendar is based on a last frost around May 1 and a first frost around October 31.
Warm-soil direct-seeded crops such as beans, cucumbers, and melons need soil temperatures of at least 60 degrees F to reduce the risk of seed rot.

Planning notes

Use the UMD calendar ranges as the period when each vegetable can be planted and expected to succeed, then plant small batches every two weeks for sustained harvest.
Treat direct-sown plants as the default where the calendar lists direct seeding; crops with an asterisk may also be transplanted for an earlier harvest.
Crops with a long period from seed to harvest must be started indoors under grow lights before transplanting them outside as seedlings.
Direct-sow snap beans May through July, beets April through July, carrots Mid-April through May and again mid-June through July, peas Mid-March through April, and sweet corn May through early July.
For broccoli, start spring transplants February through March and set them out in April; start fall transplants Late June through early July and set them out Mid-July through early August.
For Brussels sprouts, start transplants in May and set them out Mid-June through mid-July; for cabbage, start spring transplants Mid-February through mid-March and set them out Mid-March through mid-April.
Use cucumber Mid-May through mid-July, summer squash May through mid-June, winter squash Mid-May through mid-June, and watermelon Mid-May through mid-June for warm direct-sown cucurbit beds.
Start eggplant indoors in April and peppers March through mid-April, then transplant both Mid-May through mid-June; start tomatoes Mid-March through mid-May and transplant May through early July.
Use leaf lettuce Mid-March through May and Mid-July through the first two weeks of September; use radishes Mid-March through early May and Mid-July through mid-September.
Use spinach from mid-March through the end of April and again August through early September; use turnips mid-March through April and mid-July through August.

Catalog crop examples

These catalog entries match crops covered by the regional timing source; variety-specific details remain tied to each seed entry's own source.

Provider Bush Bean Vegetable · Warm · 50 days
Detroit Dark Red Beet Vegetable · Cool · 58 days
Waltham 29 Broccoli Vegetable · Cool · 74 days
Long Island Improved Brussels Sprouts Vegetable · Cool · 100 days
Golden Acre Cabbage Vegetable · Cool · 64 days
Danvers 126 Carrot Vegetable · Shoulder · 70 days
Snowball Y Cauliflower Vegetable · Cool · 70 days
Bright Lights Swiss Chard Vegetable · Shoulder · 55 days
Golden Bantam Sweet Corn Vegetable · Warm · 80 days
Marketmore 76 Cucumber Vegetable · Warm · 58 days
Black Beauty Eggplant Vegetable · Warm · 80 days
Lacinato Kale Vegetable · Cool · 60 days
Black Seeded Simpson Lettuce Vegetable · Cool · 45 days
Evergreen Bunching Onion Vegetable · Shoulder · 65 days
Hollow Crown Parsnip Vegetable · Cool · 120 days
Sugar Snap Pea Vegetable · Cool · 62 days
California Wonder Pepper Vegetable · Warm · 72 days
Small Sugar Pumpkin Vegetable · Warm · 100 days
French Breakfast Radish Vegetable · Cool · 28 days
Bloomsdale Spinach Vegetable · Cool · 42 days
Delicata Winter Squash Vegetable · Warm · 100 days
Waltham Butternut Squash Vegetable · Warm · 95 days
Roma Tomato Vegetable · Warm · 76 days
Purple Top White Globe Turnip Vegetable · Cool · 55 days
Sugar Baby Watermelon Vegetable · Warm · 80 days

Related regional guides

Delaware Frost-Probability Vegetable Garden University of Delaware Cooperative Extension guide for frost-probability planning, succession rows, fall crops, and tender-crop timing in Delaware.
New Jersey Frost-Range Seed-Starting Garden Rutgers NJAES seed-starting guide for New Jersey gardeners using local last-frost ranges, cool-season transplants, and warm-season soil readiness.
Virginia Hardiness Zone Vegetable Planting Guide A Virginia Cooperative Extension guide for USDA hardiness-zone vegetable planting tables, frost ranges, microclimates, row covers, and crop windows.

Source: UMD Extension Vegetable Planting Calendar