March planting calendar
springWhat to plant in March
Spring arrives for zones 7-10 outdoors. Zones 3-6 ramp up indoor seed-starting. March is the busiest month for cool-season sowing across the US and UK.
Universal March tasks
These tasks apply to most temperate gardens across the US and UK in March. Check the per-zone sections below for the specific crops to plant in your zone.
- Start tomato, pepper, and eggplant seeds indoors (if not already).
- Direct-sow peas, spinach, lettuce, radishes once soil is workable.
- Transplant onions and leeks outdoors in zones 5-9.
- Plant bare-root fruit trees, berries, and asparagus crowns.
- Prune roses just before they break dormancy.
- Top-dress beds with compost and start hardening off transplants.
UK gardeners — March
March opens outdoor sowing for most of the UK. Direct-sow peas, broad beans, spinach, radishes, and early carrots under cloches. Indoor: tomatoes, peppers, aubergines, cucumbers. Plant first early potatoes mid-month.
Most of England and Wales falls in RHS H4-H5 (roughly USDA 7-8). Scotland skews cooler (H3-H4); coastal southwest skews warmer (H5). See UK hardiness ratings →
March planting by USDA zone
Pick your USDA zone for the full crop-by-crop list for March. Each zone page includes sowing, transplanting, harvesting, and maintenance actions.
Zone 3 — March
4 actions- Sow indoors: Tomatoes, peppers, eggplant, basil
- Sow indoors: Brassicas (broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower, kale)
- Prep & plan: Garden beds
See full zone 3 plan →
Zone 4 — March
4 actions- Sow indoors: Tomatoes, peppers, eggplant
- Sow indoors: Brassicas, lettuce, herbs
- Sow outdoors: Peas, spinach (late March if soil is workable)
See full zone 4 plan →
Zone 5 — March
4 actions- Sow indoors: Tomatoes, peppers, eggplant, basil
- Sow outdoors: Peas, spinach, lettuce, radishes, kale
- Sow outdoors: Carrots, beets, parsnips (late March)
See full zone 5 plan →
Zone 6 — March
4 actions- Sow indoors: Tomatoes (early March), basil, cucumbers, squash (late month)
- Sow outdoors: Peas, spinach, lettuce, radishes, kale, chard
- Sow outdoors: Carrots, beets, parsnips, turnips
See full zone 6 plan →
Zone 7 — March
4 actions- Sow outdoors: Carrots, beets, lettuce, peas, spinach, radishes
- Transplant: Brassicas, onions, potatoes, asparagus crowns
- Sow indoors: Cucumbers, squash, melons (late March)
See full zone 7 plan →
Zone 8 — March
4 actions- Transplant: Tomatoes, peppers (late March, after last frost)
- Sow outdoors: Beans, corn, cucumbers, squash, melons
- Sow outdoors: Final cool-season succession (lettuce, spinach, radishes)
See full zone 8 plan →
Zone 9 — March
4 actions- Sow outdoors: Warm-season crops in full swing — tomatoes, peppers, beans, squash, okra, melons
- Harvest: Strawberries, citrus, spring greens
- Maintain: Mulch tomato and pepper beds
See full zone 9 plan →
Zone 10 — March
4 actions- Sow outdoors: Heat-tolerant tomatoes, peppers, okra, sweet potatoes
- Sow outdoors: Eggplant, southern peas, melons
- Harvest: Spring vegetables, citrus, tropical fruit
See full zone 10 plan →
Zones 1-2 and 11-13 in March
Sub-Arctic zones 1-2 (interior Alaska and northern Canada) are still effectively dormant for any month outside June-August. Greenhouse and cold-frame work dominates the calendar; outdoor planting compresses into a 60-90 day window.
Tropical zones 11-13 (Hawaii, southern Florida, Puerto Rico) have no frost cycle. Calendar timing depends on the wet/dry seasons rather than spring/fall frost — most temperate crops grow October through April, with the hot-wet summer as the off-season.
Source and methodology
Timing curated against US Cooperative Extension publications (UNL, UMN, NC State, Texas A&M, UF/IFAS, Oregon State) and cross-checked against the RHS sowing calendar for UK readers. Frost-date averages from NOAA Climate Data Online. Curated by the Growli editorial team.