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NOTE: ADJUSTMENTS ARE DONE MANUALLY AND NOT FROM TAGS. THIS IS AN OVERVIEW PAGE AND DOESN’T HAVE TO BE EXACT. ACTUAL PLANT DATES ARE SHOWN ELSEWHERE ON SITE. DOUBLE CHECK THESE TABLES AND REDO THE PLANTING DATES TABLES.

SPRING PLANTING DATES | SPRING TEMPERATURES

FALL PLANTING DATES | FALL TEMPERATURES

Spring – Franklin Planting Strategy

https://www.almanac.com/gardening/planting-calendar/NC/Franklin,%20Macon%20County

Almanac Planting Dates Franklin

Cole crops like broccoli, cauliflower, and cabbage can be direct seeded into your garden around March 20, assuming the ground can be worked, but it’s better to start them indoors around February 21 and then transplant them into the garden around April 11. Do the same with lettuce and spinach.

Plant onion starts and potatoes around March 2. Sow the seeds of peas (sugar snap and english) at the same time. If the ground is still frozen, then plant these as soon as the ground thaws.

Do you want to grow tomatoes, peppers, and eggplants? Start these indoors around February 21. Then, around April 27 you should start watching the weather forecast and, as soon as no frost is forecast, go ahead and transplant those into the ground.

Now, for all the summer vegetables like beans, cowpeas, corn, squashes, pumpkins, cucumbers, watermelons, gourds and sunflowers, you should plant those seeds directly into the ground around May 1, or if your soil is still very cold, once the soil is near 60° F in temperature. Having said that, we note that your location has a shorter than average growing season. Many summer vegetables need more days to mature than your area will provide. For that reason, we recommend you get a head-start by starting these summer vegetables indoors around April 11, and transplant those seedlings out after the danger of frost is past.Okay, now here are the cold, hard numbers, along with specific plants:

https://garden.org/apps/calendar/?q=Franklin%2C+NC

Spring Crop Schedule Franklin

CropSow seeds indoorsTransplant seedlings into the gardenDirect sow seeds
Asparagusn/aMar 17 – Apr 1n/a
Beansn/an/aMay 1 – May 29
Beetsn/an/aMar 6 – Mar 20
BroccoliFeb 21 – Mar 6Apr 3 – Apr 17n/a
Brussel SproutsFeb 21 – Mar 6Apr 3 – Apr 17n/a
CabbageFeb 21 – Mar 6Apr 3 – Apr 17n/a
Cantaloupen/an/aApr 17 – May 1
Carrotsn/an/aMar 20 – Apr 17
CauliflowerFeb 21 – Mar 6Apr 3 – Apr 17n/a
Chardn/an/aMar 20 – Apr 3
CollardsFeb 21 – Mar 6Apr 3 – Apr 17n/a
Cornn/an/aMay 1 – May 15
Cucumbersn/an/aMay 1 – May 15
EggplantsFeb 21 – Mar 6May 1 – May 15n/a
Gourds, Squash and Pumpkinsn/an/aMay 1 – May 15
KaleFeb 21 – Mar 6Apr 3 – Apr 17n/a
KohlrabiFeb 21 – Mar 6Apr 3 – Apr 17n/a
LettuceFeb 21 – Mar 6Mar 20 – Apr 17Mar 20 – Apr 17
MustardFeb 21 – Mar 6Apr 3 – Apr 17n/a
Okran/an/aMay 1 – May 15
OnionsFeb 14 – Feb 21Mar 2 – Apr 1n/a
Peas (English)n/an/aMar 2 – Apr 1
Peas (Southern)n/an/aMay 1 – May 29
Peas (Sugar Snap)n/an/aMar 2 – Apr 1
PeppersFeb 21 – Mar 6May 1 – May 15n/a
Potatoesn/an/aMar 2 – Apr 1
Radishesn/an/aMar 17 – May 15
SpinachFeb 21 – Mar 6Apr 3 – Apr 17Mar 17 – Apr 17
Sweet Potatoesn/aMay 1 – May 22n/a
TomatoesFeb 21 – Mar 6May 1 – May 15n/a
Watermelonn/an/aMay 1 – May 15

Spring Temperatures – Franklin

Average Soil Temperatures for Current Date Franklin

Soil temperatures need to be 60-65 degrees F and rising at the 4 inch soil depth before you plant your summer crops.

Get current soil temps here: https://www.greencastonline.com/tools/soil-temperature

If you install a transplant too early the roots won’t grow and the plant will just be sitting in the soil.  If we have a large amount of rain, which seems to be the norm this year, your new plant will just be sitting in wet soil.  This could mean early disease issues.

Spring – Average Air Temperatures for Franklin

As the growing season approaches, the days get longer, the weather begins to warm up, and the nights start being less cold. You’re still getting frost, but the chance of nightly frosts gets less and less with each passing day. Eventually, the frost stops, and this is when your tender plants are fully safe. So, how do you plan for this? The probabilities on this page help you assess your risk of frost on any given day.

What’s a safe temperature for tender plants? When the nightly temperature falls, frost can form, even above 32°, because the air is colder high above the ground and the frost can form up there and then fall down onto your garden and do some damage, even if it’s 36° on the ground. So many factors come into play, including wind, concrete, houses, trees and other structures, etc etc etc. Because of all this, you might want to consider 36° as “the danger zone”.

In your average springtime, you have a 90% chance that there will be no 36° nights by May 29. In other words, you can pretty much count on being safe from frost by that day. But we want to get those tomatoes in the ground as soon as possible, right? We see that there’s still an 80% chance of 36° on May 1, so we don’t dare plant that early. We wait a few days and by May 12 we are at the 50/50 point. At this point, we are close and we can start watching the weather forecast. If the upcoming week’s forecast doesn’t show below 40°, then it’s probably okay to risk planting out your plants. If conditions change and a surprise frost does threaten, there’s always things you can do to protect plants from frost.

Spring Temperature Table – Franklin

Temperature10%20%30%40%50%60%70%80%90%
Last 16°Mar 22Mar 13Mar 7Mar 2Feb 25Feb 20Feb 15Feb 9Jan 31
Last 20°Apr 5Mar 29Mar 24Mar 20Mar 16Mar 12Mar 8Mar 3Feb 24
Last 24°Apr 16Apr 10Apr 5Apr 1Mar 28Mar 24Mar 20Mar 15Mar 9
Last 28°May 3Apr 28Apr 24Apr 21Apr 18Apr 15Apr 12Apr 8Apr 3
Last 32°May 18May 12May 8May 4May 1Apr 27Apr 24Apr 19Apr 13
Last 36°May 29May 23May 19May 16May 12May 9May 5May 1Apr 25

Fall – Franklin Planting Strategy

Gardening in the fall can be much more challenging than spring planting, because you are in a race to get your crops mature and harvested before the winter frosts begin, around October 13. This means you need to consider how much time each variety needs between planting and picking. Those numbers vary widely between different varieties of the same kinds of plants! Usually the “Days to Harvest” are present on the seed packet.

Most tomatoes, peppers and eggplants, for example, require around 100 days to harvest, therefore you’d want to transplant those into the ground around July 5. Anyway, it’s important to remember that the numbers in this fall planting guide are only a starting point for you! Good luck and good gardening to you.

Fall is the time to plant garlic. Around August 29, take your cloves apart and plant the toes about 3 to 4 inches deep. This may not be accurate! Garlic dates vary wildly around the country. The way to be sure is to use a soil thermometer. When the soil temperature is 60° at a depth of 4 inches, then plant your garlic.

Cole crops like broccoli, cauliflower, and cabbage can be direct seeded into your garden around August 4, but because of the heat during that time of year, it’s better to start them indoors around June 15 and then transplant them into the garden around July 25. Do the same with lettuce and spinach.

Sow peas directly around July 30.

Now, for all the usual hot weather veggies like beans, cowpeas, corn, squashes, pumpkins, cucumbers, watermelons, gourds and sunflowers, you should plant those seeds directly into the ground around June 30.Okay, now here are the cold, hard numbers, along with specific plants:

Fall Crop Schedule Franklin

CropSow seeds indoorsTransplant seedlings into the gardenDirect sow seeds
Beansn/an/aJun 30 – Jul 30
Beetsn/an/aJul 30 – Sep 13
BroccoliMay 19 – Jul 3Jun 30 – Aug 14n/a
Brussel SproutsMay 19 – Jul 3Jun 30 – Aug 14n/a
CabbageMay 19 – Jul 3Jun 30 – Aug 14n/a
Cantaloupen/an/aJun 15 – Jun 30
Carrotsn/an/aJul 15 – Sep 13
CauliflowerMay 19 – Jul 3Jun 30 – Aug 14n/a
Chardn/an/aJun 30 – Sep 13
CollardsJun 15 – Jul 30Jul 15 – Aug 29n/a
Cornn/an/aJun 30 – Jul 15
Cucumbersn/an/aJun 30 – Jul 15
EggplantsMay 4 – May 19Jun 15 – Jun 30n/a
Garlicn/an/aJul 30 – Sep 13
Gourds, Squash and Pumpkinsn/an/aMay 31 – Jun 30
KaleMay 19 – Jul 3Jun 30 – Aug 14n/a
KohlrabiMay 19 – Jul 3Jun 30 – Aug 14n/a
LettuceJul 15 – Aug 14Aug 14 – Sep 13Aug 14 – Sep 13
Mustardn/an/aAug 14 – Sep 13
Okran/an/aMay 31 – Jun 30
Onionsn/an/aSep 13 – Sep 23
ParsleyMay 31 – Jul 15Jul 15 – Aug 29n/a
Peas (English)n/an/aJul 15 – Aug 14
Peas (Southern)n/an/aMay 31 – Jun 30
Peas (Sugar Snap)n/an/aJul 15 – Aug 14
PeppersMay 9 – May 24Jun 20 – Jul 5n/a
Potatoesn/an/aJul 15 – Aug 14
Radishesn/an/aAug 14 – Sep 13
SpinachJun 30 – Aug 14Jul 30 – Sep 13Jul 30 – Sep 13
TomatoesMay 9 – May 24Jun 20 – Jul 5n/a
Turnipsn/an/aAug 29 – Sep 28
Watermelonn/an/aMay 31 – Jun 30

Fall Temperatures – Franklin

Average Soil Temperatures for Current Date Franklin

Get current soil temps here: https://www.greencastonline.com/tools/soil-temperature

https://garden.org/apps/frost-dates/Franklin%2C+NC/

Fall – Average Air Temperatures for Franklin

As your growing season comes to an end, the nightly temperatures for Franklin, NC start to go down, and therefore every day that goes by increases the chance that you’ll get frost. Your risk of frost really begins around September 30, and by October 21 you’re almost certain to have received at least one frost event.

The charts on this page show the probabilities of receiving a certain temperature on a certain day. Some examples that might help:

  1. You have a small 20% chance of getting 32° by October 5.
  2. There is a 50% chance of being hit by a 32° frost starting around October 13
  3. You have a 80% chance of seeing 32° by October 21
  4. Said another way, you have a 1 in 5 chance at making it to that day without a 32° night.

Fall Temperature Table – Franklin

Temperature10%20%30%40%50%60%70%80%90%
First 16°Nov 9Nov 18Nov 25Dec 1Dec 7Dec 12Dec 18Dec 25Jan 4
First 20°Nov 3Nov 9Nov 13Nov 16Nov 19Nov 22Nov 26Nov 30Dec 5
First 24°Oct 19Oct 25Oct 29Nov 1Nov 4Nov 7Nov 10Nov 14Nov 20
First 28°Oct 8Oct 12Oct 16Oct 18Oct 21Oct 24Oct 27Oct 30Nov 4
First 32°Sep 30Oct 5Oct 8Oct 11Oct 13Oct 16Oct 18Oct 21Oct 26
First 36°Sep 25Sep 29Oct 2Oct 4Oct 7Oct 9Oct 12Oct 15Oct 19