Regional guide

Washington County Utah Two-Season Vegetable Garden

USU Washington County guide for elevation-driven frost seasons, St. George heat pause, short-season sites, and fall count-back timing.

Regional timing

Current regional planting plan

USU Washington County guide for elevation-driven frost seasons, St. George heat pause, short-season sites, and fall count-back timing.

Source-backed timing USU Extension Washington County Vegetable Gardening

Washington County UT 213 frost-free days

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

USU Extension says Washington County locations vary widely in elevation, and that elevation has significant influence on climate and growing season.
St. George sits at 2,624 feet and has a frost-free growing season of more than six months.
Enterprise sits at 5,346 feet, where the frost-free season generally begins the first week of June and ends by mid-September.

Catalog priority: 14 priority crops
Climate checks: 5 climate signals
Timing basis: Using Washington County UT dates

Source-backed timing April 1 last frost and October 31 first frost from the St. George example.

Use this for the St. George low-elevation example; Enterprise and higher Washington County sites have much shorter seasons.

Crop priority Golden Acre Cabbage leads the catalog examples

Golden Acre Cabbage, Evergreen Bunching Onion, Sugar Snap Pea, Bloomsdale Spinach

Next local check Cold-hardy vegetables such as cabbage, onion, peas, spinach, and turnips can be planted before the danger of frost is over.

Those cold-hardy crops tolerate cold temperatures but do not fare well when temperatures reach the mid-eighties and above.

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. Utah Frost Groups A USU frost-group guide for Utah planting dates, city frost swings, protected-cover caveats, succession rows, and fall windows.

Climate signals

USU Extension says Washington County locations vary widely in elevation, and that elevation has significant influence on climate and growing season.
St. George sits at 2,624 feet and has a frost-free growing season of more than six months.
Enterprise sits at 5,346 feet, where the frost-free season generally begins the first week of June and ends by mid-September.
In the short 3 1/2 months season, knowing when to plant is critical.
USU says frost-free dates are average dates and can vary from season to season.

Planning notes

Cold-hardy vegetables such as cabbage, onion, peas, spinach, and turnips can be planted before the danger of frost is over.
Those cold-hardy crops tolerate cold temperatures but do not fare well when temperatures reach the mid-eighties and above.
Beets, carrots, potatoes, and parsnips may be planted before the last frost date, but can be tender if above ground when the temperature drops well below freezing.
Transplants such as tomato, pepper, eggplant, and melons need hardening off for 7 to 10 days before planting outdoors.
In the St. George timing example, USU says to plant them outdoors after the first of April, the last avg. frost date.
Corn, beans, and root vegetables such as carrots and beets are direct-seeded in the garden.
In St. George, June through mid-September temperatures exceed 95 degrees nearly every day, creating a heat pause for many vegetables.
High temperatures can render pollen sterile, and tomatoes and squash may have flowers wilt and die instead of forming fruits.
Higher elevation gardens with cooler average temperatures may have better success during the hot summer period.
USU says Washington County can have two growing seasons: spring crops before hot summer weather, and fall crops before frost.
For fall planting, use the days-to-harvest count so the crop can bear before the first average frost on October 31.
USU's example says a crop needing 60 days from planting to harvest should be counted back from October 30 and planted by about August 30.
Potatoes are a source row without priority links because the catalog potato entry is a specific variety and this guide avoids implying USU cultivar recommendations.
Use these priority catalog links as crop-row examples, not USU cultivar recommendations.

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.

Golden Acre Cabbage Vegetable · Cool · 64 days
Evergreen Bunching Onion Vegetable · Shoulder · 65 days
Sugar Snap Pea Vegetable · Cool · 62 days
Bloomsdale Spinach Vegetable · Cool · 42 days
Purple Top White Globe Turnip Vegetable · Cool · 55 days
Detroit Dark Red Beet Vegetable · Cool · 58 days
Danvers 126 Carrot Vegetable · Shoulder · 70 days
Hollow Crown Parsnip Vegetable · Cool · 120 days
Roma Tomato Vegetable · Warm · 76 days
California Wonder Pepper Vegetable · Warm · 72 days
Black Beauty Eggplant Vegetable · Warm · 80 days
Hale's Best Jumbo Melon Vegetable · Warm · 85 days
Golden Bantam Sweet Corn Vegetable · Warm · 80 days
Provider Bush Bean Vegetable · Warm · 50 days

Related regional guides

Utah Frost-Group Vegetable Garden A USU frost-group guide for Utah planting dates, city frost swings, protected-cover caveats, succession rows, and fall windows.
Wasatch Front Vegetable Planting Dates USU Wasatch Front guide for city last-frost dates, hardy/tender planting groups, succession rows, and fall harvest windows.
Washington County Utah Fall Vegetable Calendar USU Washington County fall guide for August direct-seed windows, September transplants, elevation shifts, frost caveats, and storage onions.
Utah Vegetable Variety Recommendations USU archived Utah guide for variety selection, maturity/frost-free caveats, disease-resistance framing, planting chart, and conservative matches.

Source: USU Extension Washington County Vegetable Gardening