Person with soil and a seedling in their hand

Planning guide

Vegetable and Fresh Herb Sowing Calendar

Harvesting fruit (and vegetables) from the garden is one of the joys of summer. When sowing, certain dates must be respected in order to maximize the harvest. The calendars below indicate which moment to plant vegetable and fine herb seeds, at what depth, and when to transplant them to the garden.

Before You Start

Before starting, it’s important that you properly plan your garden out. Choose a location that is:

Sunny
Both clear and protected from prevailing winds
Far from trees and shrubs
Near a water outlet

Next, choose the vegetables and herbs based on your taste and needs as well as the size of your garden, taking into account that you need to leave space between plants.

SHOP GREENHOUSES AND SEEDLING PRODUCTS

Indoor Sowing

Certain vegetables need to be planted before spring in order to give them the chance to mature by the month of August or September. To do so, we plant the seeds in small plantable pots or peat pellets in March or April and place them in a warm and sunny area in the house, watering them regularly.

Vegetable	Indoor sowing	Depth	Transplantation	Spacing in garden
Broccoli	Early April	6 mm	Early June	Seeds: 45 cm Rows: 60 cm
Brussels sprout	Mid-April	6 mm	Mid to Late May	Seeds: 60 cm Rows: 60 cm
Cabbage	Mid-April	5 mm	May	Seeds: 45 cm Rows: 45 cm
Cauliflower	Mid-April	6 mm	Late May	Seeds: 45 cm Rows: 60 cm
Celeriac	Mid-March	5 mm	Mid to Late May	Seeds: 25 cm Rows: 50 cm
Celery	Early March	3 mm	Late May	Seeds: 20 cm Rows: 40 cm
Eggplant	Late March	3 mm	Mid-May	Seeds: 45 cm Rows: 60 cm
Ground Cherries	Early April	6 mm	Early June	Seeds: 60 cm Rows: 120 cm
Hot Peppers	Early March	6 mm	Late May	Seeds: 45 cm Rows: 100 cm
Kale	Mid-March	1 cm	Early May	Seeds: 45 cm Rows: 60 cm
Kohlrabi (German turnip)	Early April	6 cm	Mid-June	Seeds: 15 cm Rows: 30 cm
Leek	Early March	1 cm	Early May	Seeds: 10 cm Rows: 30 cm
Lettuce	Mid-April	6 mm	Late May	Seeds: 70 cm Rows: 120 cm
Pepper	Late March	3 mm	Early June	Seeds: 30 cm Rows: 50 cm
Pumpkin and squash	Early May	2.5 cm	Early June	Seeds: 90 cm Rows: 120 cm
Swiss Chard	Early April	1 cm	Mid-May	Seeds: 20 cm Rows: 45 cm
Tomatillo	Late April	5 mm	Early June	Seeds: 90 cm Rows: 140 cm
Tomato	Late March	6 mm	Early June	Seeds: 45 cm Rows: 80 cm
Zucchini	Early May	2-3 cm	Early June	Seeds: 20 cm Rows: 30 cm

Vegetable	Indoor sowing	Depth	Transplantation	Spacing in garden
Broccoli	Early April	6 mm	Early June	Seeds: 45 cm Rows: 60 cm
Brussels sprout	Mid-April	6 mm	Mid to Late May	Seeds: 60 cm Rows: 60 cm
Cabbage	Mid-April	5 mm	May	Seeds: 45 cm Rows: 45 cm
Cauliflower	Mid-April	6 mm	Late May	Seeds: 45 cm Rows: 60 cm
Celeriac	Mid-March	5 mm	Mid to Late May	Seeds: 25 cm Rows: 50 cm
Celery	Early March	3 mm	Late May	Seeds: 20 cm Rows: 40 cm
Eggplant	Late March	3 mm	Mid-May	Seeds: 45 cm Rows: 60 cm
Ground Cherries	Early April	6 mm	Early June	Seeds: 60 cm Rows: 120 cm
Hot Peppers	Early March	6 mm	Late May	Seeds: 45 cm Rows: 100 cm
Kale	Mid-March	1 cm	Early May	Seeds: 45 cm Rows: 60 cm
Kohlrabi (German turnip)	Early April	6 cm	Mid-June	Seeds: 15 cm Rows: 30 cm
Leek	Early March	1 cm	Early May	Seeds: 10 cm Rows: 30 cm
Lettuce	Mid-April	6 mm	Late May	Seeds: 70 cm Rows: 120 cm
Pepper	Late March	3 mm	Early June	Seeds: 30 cm Rows: 50 cm
Pumpkin and squash	Early May	2.5 cm	Early June	Seeds: 90 cm Rows: 120 cm
Swiss Chard	Early April	1 cm	Mid-May	Seeds: 20 cm Rows: 45 cm
Tomatillo	Late April	5 mm	Early June	Seeds: 90 cm Rows: 140 cm
Tomato	Late March	6 mm	Early June	Seeds: 45 cm Rows: 80 cm
Zucchini	Early May	2-3 cm	Early June	Seeds: 20 cm Rows: 30 cm

Pro Tip

Sowing too late (or too early) can have harmful consequences on the crops. Make sure to respect the planting dates. Note that dates may vary from one region to another.

Get Grow Lights

Although most seeds don’t need light to germinate, several hours of sunlight per day are needed once the seedlings sprout. However, you might have trouble finding a space that gets sun all day in your house. You can turn to grow lights to get strong and healthy seedlings.

Grow lights provide high-quality light with low energy consumption. They also operate at a cooler temperature to avoid damaging fragile crops. Finally, most lamps let you choose between several light spectrum settings—like seedling, vegetation, and flowering—adapting to the growth stage of the plant.

You can also simply change out the bulb in your lamp or fixture for a grow light bulb!

SHOP GROW LIGHTS

Outdoor Sowing

Certain vegetables, like root vegetables, resist better to the cold weather and should be planted directly outside. Therefore, it’s possible to skip the transplantation step.

Vegetable	Outdoor sowing	Depth	Spacing in garden
Beet	Mid-May	2.5 cm	Seeds: 10 cm Rows: 35 cm
Carrot	Mid-May	1 cm	Seeds: 3 cm Rows: 15 cm
Corn	Mid-May	5 cm	Seeds: 15 cm Rows: 30 cm
Cucumber	Late May	20 cm	Seeds: 1 m Rows: 1 m
Garlic	Mid-October	3 cm	Cloves: 15 cm Rows: 25 cm
Kale	May	1 cm	Seeds: 45 cm Rows: 60 cm
Kohlrabi (German turnip)	Early May	5 mm	Seeds: 15 cm Rows: 30 cm
Lettuce	Early May	1 cm	Seeds: 20 cm Rows: 30 cm
Onion	Early June	Three times the height of the bulb	Bulbs: 10 cm Rows: 20 cm
Parsnip	Mid-May	1 cm	Seeds: 15 cm Rows: 30 cm
Peas	Mid-May	2 cm	Seeds: 3 cm Rows: 30 cm
Potato	Early May	15 cm	Seeds: 30 cm Rows: 50 cm
Pumpkin and squash	Early June	2-3 cm	Seeds: 90 cm Rows: 120 cm
Radish	Early May	2 cm	Seeds: 3 cm Rows: 20 cm
Shallot	Early May	2 cm	Seeds: 15 cm Rows: 20 cm
Spinach	Mid-May	3 cm	Seeds: 10 cm Rows: 25 cm
Swiss Chard	Early May	1 cm	Seeds: 20 cm Rows: 45 cm
Turnip	Early May	5 mm	Seeds: 5 cm Rows: 20 cm
Zucchini	Early June	2-3 cm	Seeds: 70 cm Rows: 120 cm

Vegetable	Outdoor sowing	Depth	Spacing in garden
Beet	Mid-May	2.5 cm	Seeds: 10 cm Rows: 35 cm
Carrot	Mid-May	1 cm	Seeds: 3 cm Rows: 15 cm
Corn	Mid-May	5 cm	Seeds: 15 cm Rows: 30 cm
Cucumber	Late May	20 cm	Seeds: 1 m Rows: 1 m
Garlic	Mid-October	3 cm	Cloves: 15 cm Rows: 25 cm
Kale	May	1 cm	Seeds: 45 cm Rows: 60 cm
Kohlrabi (German turnip)	Early May	5 mm	Seeds: 15 cm Rows: 30 cm
Lettuce	Early May	1 cm	Seeds: 20 cm Rows: 30 cm
Onion	Early June	Three times the height of the bulb	Bulbs: 10 cm Rows: 20 cm
Parsnip	Mid-May	1 cm	Seeds: 15 cm Rows: 30 cm
Peas	Mid-May	2 cm	Seeds: 3 cm Rows: 30 cm
Potato	Early May	15 cm	Seeds: 30 cm Rows: 50 cm
Pumpkin and squash	Early June	2-3 cm	Seeds: 90 cm Rows: 120 cm
Radish	Early May	2 cm	Seeds: 3 cm Rows: 20 cm
Shallot	Early May	2 cm	Seeds: 15 cm Rows: 20 cm
Spinach	Mid-May	3 cm	Seeds: 10 cm Rows: 25 cm
Swiss Chard	Early May	1 cm	Seeds: 20 cm Rows: 45 cm
Turnip	Early May	5 mm	Seeds: 5 cm Rows: 20 cm
Zucchini	Early June	2-3 cm	Seeds: 70 cm Rows: 120 cm

Pro Tip

Seeds should be planted 4 times deeper than the diameter of the seed. For very small seeds, like carrots or parsley, simply cover them with a thin layer of soil.

Fresh Herb Sowing

Fresh herbs enhance the flavour of your meals. Why pass them up when they are so easy to grow?

Fresh herb	Indoor sowing	Outdoor sowing	Transplantation
Dill		Mid-May
Basil	Mid-April		Early June
Chives (perennial)	March		Early June
Coriander		Early May
Marjoram	Mid-March		Early June
Mint (perennial)		Early May (potted)
Oregano (perennial)	Mid-March		Early June
Parsley	Early March		Early May
Sage (perennial)	Early April		Early June
Thyme (perennial)	Mid-March		Early June

Fresh herb	Indoor sowing	Outdoor sowing	Transplantation
Dill		Mid-May
Basil	Mid-April		Early June
Chives (perennial)	March		Early June
Coriander		Early May
Marjoram	Mid-March		Early June
Mint (perennial)		Early May (potted)
Oregano (perennial)	Mid-March		Early June
Parsley	Early March		Early May
Sage (perennial)	Early April		Early June
Thyme (perennial)	Mid-March		Early June

Enjoy Fresh Veggies All Summer

Some sows can be repeated, providing you with fresh veggies all summer. That’s not only the case for quick-growing vegetables like radishes and mesclun, but also with herbs that quickly go to seed, like cilantro.

Pro Tip

If you’re the type of person that keeps their fruit and flower seeds, know that most seeds need a cold period before germinating. This process mimicking seasonal temperature changes is called cold stratification. Before getting started, make sure you read up on it!