What to Plant in Alberta in May
Alberta’s average last spring frost falls on May 21, and that single fact should decide everything you plant this month: cold-hardy crops like peas…
Gardening in Alberta
Everything we have worked out for Alberta: what to plant and when, which varieties finish in time, the pests that actually turn up here, and the jobs that pay off month by month. We also cover the rest of the property, from lawns and soil to home care and energy, because a garden rarely stops at the vegetable bed.
The numbers first, because everything else follows from them. Measured at the weather station in Calgary, the last spring freeze falls around May 21 and the first fall freeze falls around September 16, 1,171 growing degree days in the year.
That is little accumulated warmth: tomatoes need a tunnel or a greenhouse here, whatever the frost dates suggest. Garlic does well: 39.1 weeks below 40 °F, comfortably past the six it needs to form a proper head.
Elsewhere on the property in Alberta: the pests that turn up here.
Figures from Environment and Climate Change Canada. A state is not one climate: elevation, a large lake or the coast can move these dates by two weeks either way, so check your own county with the extension service before you spend money.
What to Plant in Alberta in March
March in Alberta means seed catalogs and pruning shears, not seed packets going into open ground.
What to Plant in Alberta in June
By June, most of Alberta is working with open ground rather than frozen soil.
What to Plant in Alberta in July
July in Alberta sits well inside the frost-free stretch, so the real question is not whether to plant, but what will actually finish before the growing…
What to Plant in Alberta in January
The direct answer: nothing goes into open ground in Alberta in January. The soil is frozen solid across the province, often to a depth of several feet…
What to Plant in Alberta in February
February in Alberta means frozen ground from Medicine Hat to Peace River, so nothing goes into open soil this month.
What to Plant in Alberta in December
Short answer: nothing goes into open ground in Alberta in December. The soil is frozen solid across the province, and the growing season closed weeks ago.
What to Plant in Alberta in August
By August, Alberta’s growing season is in full swing but the clock is already running.
What to Plant in Alberta in April
April in Alberta sits weeks ahead of the average last frost, so the answer is short: hardy, cold-tolerant crops can go into workable soil, warm-season…
Forcing Spring Bulbs Indoors in Alberta
In Calgary, the coldest month averages a nightly low of 8.2°F, and the region sits in Canadian hardiness zone 4a.