What to plant in May in Zone 3

Start indoors this month

Seed trays indoors, under a light or in the brightest window you have. These are slow crops that need a head start on the season.

• Cherry Tomato — window Apr 18 – May 2 (5 gal, 12" deep)
• Loose-leaf Lettuce — window May 2 – May 16 (2 gal, 6" deep)
• Basil — window Apr 18 – May 2 (2 gal, 8" deep)
• Kale — window Apr 25 – May 9 (3 gal, 10" deep)
• Bush Cucumber — window May 9 – May 23 (5 gal, 12" deep)
• Zucchini — window May 9 – May 23 (7 gal, 14" deep)
• Spinach — window May 2 – May 16 (2 gal, 6" deep)

Set out into the final container

Transplants go into the pot they will finish in. Hardening them off for four to five days first prevents most transplant shock.

• Loose-leaf Lettuce — window May 30 – Jun 9 (2 gal, 6" deep)
• Kale — window May 16 – May 26 (3 gal, 10" deep)
• Strawberry — window May 2 – May 12 (2 gal, 8" deep)
• Spinach — window May 9 – May 19 (2 gal, 6" deep)

Direct sow

Sow straight into the final pot. These crops resent root disturbance, and transplanting them usually costs more time than it saves.

• Loose-leaf Lettuce — window May 9 – May 30 (2 gal, 6" deep)
• Radish — window May 9 – May 30 (1 gal, 6" deep)
• Kale — window May 16 – Jun 6 (3 gal, 10" deep)
• Spinach — window May 2 – May 23 (2 gal, 6" deep)
• Carrot — window May 16 – Jun 6 (3 gal, 12" deep)

Sow for autumn

A second sowing timed backwards from first frost. Fewer pests, less watering, and better flavour in most cool crops.

No autumn sowing window opens this month in this zone.

Harvesting this month

Nothing from our dataset is in its harvest window this month here.

Not this month

Everything in the dataset is either in an active window or already finished for the year. Nothing is badly timed this month.