Turnips planting calendar
When to plant turnips — pick your state
Turnips timing swings hard by climate — choose your state for sow, transplant, and harvest dates calibrated to its USDA zone and frost window.
Northeast
Southeast
Midwest
Southwest
West
Pacific
Not listed: Hawaii — the dominant climate zone there is outside turnips's practical range, so a generic calendar would mislead more than it helps.
Common questions
When should I plant turnips?
Turnips are direct-sown cool-season roots that tolerate hard frost — seedlings survive down to about -4 °C once established. Sow 3-5 weeks before the last spring frost for a late-spring harvest; a fall sowing 6-8 weeks before first fall frost is often preferred since mild frost actually sweetens the roots. Harvest roots at 2-3 inches diameter; roots left longer turn woody. Greens ('turnip tops') can be cut at any size and are ready in 30-35 days. Because the right window depends on your local frost dates, pick your US state above for a calendar with exact sow, transplant, and harvest dates.
Does the best time to plant turnips vary by state?
Yes — planting dates swing by several weeks across the US because each state sits in a different USDA zone with its own frost window. Every state page here gives turnips dates calibrated to that state's climate.
How are these turnips planting dates calculated?
Each state's dates come from that state's dominant USDA hardiness zone and NOAA average frost dates, then adjusted for turnips's cold tolerance and days to maturity.