Growing Spinach in Ohio: When Will It Bolt?
In Columbus, the sun hangs around for 14 hours and 51 minutes on the longest day of the year.
Gardening in Ohio
Everything we have worked out for Ohio: 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 Columbus, the last spring freeze runs May 5 to May 15 and the first fall freeze runs October 5 to October 15, USDA zones 5b-6b, 3,783 growing degree days in the year.
Garlic does well: 21.8 weeks below 40 °F, comfortably past the six it needs to form a proper head.
Elsewhere on the property in Ohio: lawn care, soil and amendments, watering, flowers and borders and 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.
Growing Pumpkins in Ohio: Will They Ripen in Time?
Yes, but only if the vine’s flowers open before the third week of August. Ohio’s zone 6a growing season closes with the first fall frost, expected…
When Does the Heating Season Start in Ohio?
In central Ohio, heating demand typically begins in October, when the monthly mean temperature first drops below the 65 F threshold used to calculate…
Will Carrots Fork in Ohio Soil?
Ohio’s representative soil, the Miamian series, is a well-drained silt loam with only moderate clay.
When to Sow Beets in Ohio
The direct answer: sow beet seed in Ohio 2 to 3 weeks before your local last spring frost date, which runs May 5 to May 15 across the state’s zone 6a…
Beet Soil in Ohio: What the Root Will Meet
Ohio gardeners working the state’s representative ground get a soil that’s structurally decent for root crops but not the loose, sandy profile beets…
Growing Parsnips in Ohio: Will They Sweeten?
Yes, Ohio’s parsnips will sweeten. The state’s winters bring the sustained cold parsnips need to convert their stored starch into sugar, and the growing…
Growing Carrots in Ohio: Soil, Sowing and Forked Roots
Ohio carrots need loose, deep soil and a sowing date pinned to the frost calendar, not the promise on the seed packet.
Growing Beets in Ohio: Soil, Sowing and Bolting
Beets do fine in most Ohio gardens once two things line up: sowing early enough that the roots form before summer heat sets in, and enough steady…
When to Start Pepper Seed in Ohio
In central Ohio, expect to start pepper seed indoors somewhere between late February and mid-March, counting back 8 to 10 weeks from a transplant date…