Tomato Planting Dates in Minnesota: Counting Back From Your Frost Window
Minnesota’s last spring frost falls between April 17 and April 30 in Minneapolis, so tomato transplants go in during early to mid May, adjusted for your county.
Gardening in Minnesota
Everything we have worked out for Minnesota: 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 Minneapolis, the last spring freeze runs April 17 to April 30 and the first fall freeze runs October 11 to October 23, USDA zones 3a-5a, 3,013 growing degree days in the year.
Garlic does well: 30.4 weeks below 40 °F, comfortably past the six it needs to form a proper head.
Elsewhere on the property in Minnesota: the pests that turn up here.
Figures from NOAA's 1991-2020 climate normals. 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.
Tomato Pests in Minnesota: Which Ones Actually Show Up Here
A season-by-season rundown of the tomato pests that actually appear in Minnesota gardens, how to identify each one, and what controls them.
Tomato Varieties That Ripen in Time in Minnesota
A season-by-season look at which tomato varieties, from cherry to paste, have enough days to mature before Minnesota’s first fall frost arrives.
Growing Tomatoes in Minnesota: Planting Dates, Varieties and Local Pests
Minnesota gardeners transplant tomatoes after the mid-to-late April frost window clears, choosing short-season varieties suited to disease pressure and a compact growing season.