What to Plant in Minnesota in November
By November, Minnesota has already crossed its first fall frost window (October 11 to October 23), so this is not a planting month for anything tender.
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.
What to Plant in Minnesota in May
May is the month Minnesota gardeners split their beds in two: hardy crops go in the ground now, tender ones wait.
What to Plant in Minnesota in March
Minnesota gardeners get one clear answer for March: nothing goes into open garden soil yet, almost anywhere in the state.
What to Plant in Minnesota in June
By June, Minnesota gardens are past the frost gamble and into the real growing season.
What to Plant in Minnesota in July
July in Minnesota is peak-season gardening: soil is warm, days are long, and the work shifts from planting the main crop to keeping it fed, watered, and…
What to Plant in Minnesota in January
Nothing goes into open ground in Minnesota in January. The soil is frozen solid, often a foot or more down, and the state’s hardiness range of 3a-5a…
What to Plant in Minnesota in February
Nothing goes into open ground in Minnesota in February. The soil is frozen solid across the entire state, from the Iowa border to the Canadian line, and…
What to Plant in Minnesota in December
Minnesota’s ground is frozen solid by December, so the direct answer is that nothing new goes into open soil this month.
What to Plant in Minnesota in August
August in Minnesota is a fast-crop month, not a planting-season month. You’re past the last frost window (April 17 to April 30) and running against the…
What to Plant in Minnesota in April
Minnesota’s April is a transition month, not a planting month for most of the garden.