Regional guide

Contra Costa Interior Vegetable Garden

A Contra Costa interior guide for Sunset zones 14-16, spring/summer beds, fall/winter resets, bean heat limits, artichoke frost risk, and interior timing.

Climate signals

• UC Master Gardener Contra Costa says the interior regions include Central and Eastern Contra Costa County in Sunset zones 14, 15, and 16.
• The guide says these interior Contra Costa regions are influenced by both ocean air and inland air.
• Snap beans can be sown May to early June, but hot temperatures above 80 F may reduce bean set.
• Artichokes need partial shade to reduce summer heat and may winter over only if temperatures stay above 25 F.

Planning notes

• Use May-centered spring/summer beds for tomatoes, peppers, eggplant, beans, corn, cucumbers, squash, okra, and watermelon where the guide lists warm-season planting windows.
• Use February-to-May and August-to-November fall/winter rows for carrots, lettuce, spinach, peas, beets, radish, broccoli, and cabbage where the guide lists cool-season repeats.
• Treat broccoli and cabbage as fall/winter backbone crops even though the guide also gives early spring planting windows.
• Use this page for the interior Central and Eastern Contra Costa scope; other Contra Costa regional guides use different local planting windows.

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.

• Green Globe Artichoke Vegetable · Warm · 120 days
• Provider Bush Bean Vegetable · Warm · 50 days
• Detroit Dark Red Beet Vegetable · Cool · 58 days
• Waltham 29 Broccoli Vegetable · Cool · 74 days
• Golden Acre Cabbage Vegetable · Cool · 64 days
• Danvers 126 Carrot Vegetable · Shoulder · 70 days
• Golden Bantam Sweet Corn Vegetable · Warm · 80 days
• Marketmore 76 Cucumber Vegetable · Warm · 58 days
• Black Beauty Eggplant Vegetable · Warm · 80 days
• Black Seeded Simpson Lettuce Vegetable · Cool · 45 days
• Clemson Spineless Okra Vegetable · Warm · 56 days
• Sugar Snap Pea Vegetable · Cool · 62 days
• California Wonder Pepper Vegetable · Warm · 72 days
• French Breakfast Radish Vegetable · Cool · 28 days
• Bloomsdale Spinach Vegetable · Cool · 42 days
• Waltham Butternut Squash Vegetable · Warm · 95 days
• Roma Tomato Vegetable · Warm · 76 days
• Sugar Baby Watermelon Vegetable · Warm · 80 days

Related regional guides

• San Mateo/San Francisco Microclimate Calendar UC ANR calendar for San Mateo and San Francisco hot, sunny, and foggy vegetable planting windows plus year-round bed turnover.
• Santa Clara County Vegetable Planting Chart UC Master Gardener chart for central Santa Clara County seeding, transplanting, borderline months, and warm/cool seasons.
• Alameda West of East Bay Hills Planting Guide UC Alameda County Master Gardener guide for west of the East Bay Hills maritime gardens, microclimate caveats, and crop rows.
• Sonoma County Vegetable Planting Summary UC Master Gardener Sonoma guide for local direct seeding, transplanting, weather protection, spacing, and maturity timing.
• Napa County Seasonal Vegetable Planting Calendar UC Master Gardeners Napa County guide linking seasonal harvest pages, seed-starting advice, and a calendar-format planting PDF.
• Marin County Monthly Edible Garden Schedule UC Marin Master Gardeners monthly edible schedule for sowing inside/outside, transplants, and maintenance rows.

Source: UC Master Gardener Contra Costa interior vegetable planting guide