Growing Garlic in Ontario: Planting Dates, Varieties and Winter Cold
Ontario’s cold winter and its average October 16 first frost meet garlic’s vernalization needs, with planting timed to the weeks just before that date.
Gardening in Ontario
Everything we have worked out for Ontario: 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 Toronto, the last spring freeze falls around April 30 and the first fall freeze falls around October 16, 2,297 growing degree days in the year.
That is enough for early varieties, tight for anything late. 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 Ontario: 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.
Growing Tomatoes in Ontario: Planting Dates, Varieties and Ripening Before Frost
Ontario’s tomato season runs from a mid-May transplant date to an October frost, with variety choice determining how much margin you have.
Tomato Planting Dates in Ontario: Counting Back From Your Frost Window
Environment and Climate Change Canada’s climate normals put Toronto’s mean last frost at April 30, a midpoint gardeners should treat as a starting point, not a guarantee.
Tomato Varieties That Ripen in Time in Ontario
Uses Toronto Pearson’s average last and first frost dates to show which named tomato varieties have enough season to ripen fully in Ontario gardens.