Gardening in Pennsylvania: What the Season Actually Allows
Pennsylvania’s growing season runs from a last spring frost in late March to early April down south to a first fall frost in early-to-mid November, but…
Gardening in Pennsylvania
Everything we have worked out for Pennsylvania: 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 Philadelphia, the last spring freeze runs March 29 to April 6 and the first fall freeze runs November 5 to November 16, USDA zones 5a-7b, 4,116 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 Pennsylvania: 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.
The Pennsylvania Lawn Care Calendar, Month by Month
This calendar breaks Pennsylvania lawn care into cool-season and warm-season tracks, using Philadelphia’s frost dates and Clemson’s species-specific maintenance schedules.
Flea beetles in Pennsylvania: When It Shows Up and What Stops It
Flea beetles start chewing on Pennsylvania gardens as early as mid-April in the Philadelphia suburbs and Lancaster County, and as late as mid-May up in…
Aphids in Pennsylvania: When It Shows Up and What Stops It
Aphids become active in Pennsylvania as early as late March in the southeastern counties around Philadelphia, and by mid-April almost everywhere else in…
Onion maggot in Pennsylvania: When It Shows Up and What Stops It
Onion maggot shows up in Pennsylvania soil each spring once temperatures push past roughly 40°F for a sustained stretch, usually between mid-April and…
Japanese beetle in Pennsylvania: When It Shows Up and What Stops It
Japanese beetles start showing up in Pennsylvania in mid-to-late June, with populations peaking through July and tapering off by late August.
Colorado potato beetle in Pennsylvania: When It Shows Up and What Stops It
Colorado potato beetles show up in Pennsylvania gardens and farm fields as soon as soil temperatures climb past 50°F, which typically lands between late…
Spotted lanternfly in Pennsylvania: When It Shows Up and What Stops It
The spotted lanternfly is active in Pennsylvania from roughly April through the first hard frost, with adults at their most visible and destructive stage…
Brown marmorated stink bug in Pennsylvania: When It Shows Up and What Stops It
Pennsylvania is ground zero for the brown marmorated stink bug in the United States.
Tomato hornworm in Pennsylvania: When It Shows Up and What Stops It
Tomato hornworms typically appear in Pennsylvania gardens from late June through August, with damage peaking in mid-summer as the caterpillars reach…