Summer Vegetable Seeds

Summer vegetable seeds

Garden Clippings for June 6, 2026

Too many gardeners have told me that their veggies aren’t growing yet. The plants are not dying, but they look the same as the day they were planted in the middle of May.

Therein lies the issue. Aha! The middle of May was only three weeks ago. May was cooler than we would have liked, and plants don’t like cold soil. That’s true for tomatoes, but especially true for peppers. Peppers will remain stubbornly idle until sunshine is steady, and nighttime temperatures are consistently above 10 degrees C.

Lettuce, radish, peas, onion, spinach and the family of cabbage are fine planted in early May and can tolerate a pinch of frost, but all other vegetable plants should be planted sometime during the months of May and June. Kale can also be planted in August for a fall harvest.

Squash, cucumber, melons and zucchini can be direct seeded in the garden anytime in June. When soil is warm, seeds will sprout in a few days and will grow vines within a few weeks. Started seedlings are available If you want to get a head start on these plants.

My Mother always sowed her green beans on the first or second day of June, a week after the May two-four weekend. Like clockwork, the beans would be ready to pick in the week prior to Civic Holiday weekend. Mom would corral the kids to pick the beans and trim the ends. She would blanche, bag, and put them in the freezer to be eaten all winter.

If Mom wanted, she could have sown a new crop of bean seeds every two weeks in June and July to give a steady supply of fresh beans until late summer or early fall.

Potatoes should be planted in May or early June. In our Climatic Zone 6, you can plant a second crop of potatoes in July for fall harvest.

Carrots are usually planted early in May for a mid-summer crop. Carrots can also be planted in early summer, provided they have 60 to 75 days of growing before freeze-up. Ditto for beets which are usually planted as soon as the soil is workable. Plant a second crop of beet seeds in July or early August for fall harvest.

Lettuce is a cool season crop that wants to be sown early in spring for harvest in May and June. Plant seeds directly in the soil or buy started plants which will be ready to eat a few weeks after planting. Lettuce won’t perform well if planted in late spring because summer heat will cause plants to bolt. Plant a second lettuce crop after August 15 for eating in September and October.