Seeds & Plants Purchased for 2016 Victory Gardens - 20 Raised Beds
My Victory Garden Ideal Planting Schedule - Lubbock, TX   Zone 7  - USDA Zone Finder

Your Spring planting strategy:

• Cole crops like broccoli, cauliflower, and cabbage can be direct seeded into your garden around the 4th week of February, assuming the ground can be worked, but it's better to start them indoors around the last week in January and then transplant them into the garden around mid-March. Do the same with lettuce and spinach.

• Plant onion starts and potatoes around the first week in February. 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 the mid February. Then, around the middle of April 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 when your soil is still very cold, once the soil is near 60° F in temperature.

• Fall gardening can be as rewarding as spring gardening.  There is more of an issue with timing here.   Plants have to mature and be ready for harvest before the first frost.  In Lubbock that is generally around Halloween.  Check the "Days to Harvest"  or "Days to Maturity" that are listed on seed packet.
  • Days to Harvest and/or Maturity are terms that are not defined universally.  Generally speaking, "Days to Harvest" usually refers to the number of days it takes from setting out a transplant until the first harvest can be made.   While "Days to Maturity" refers to the number of days it takes from sowing until the first harvest can be made.   But that is not always the case.  Because it is not an exact science, I add a few days and use the date as a time for me to start checking for harvestable goodies.
  • Remember the weather changes everything.  Seasonally high & low temperature and well as more or less rainfall can all impact maturity.  So be flexible.

• For example, tomatoes, peppers and eggplants, require 100 +/- days to harvest.  Then you need to subtract 100 days from the first frost date.  In Lubbock that would be in the 3rd week of July.

• I look forward to planting garlic on mid-September. Buy cloves online or a your local nursery.  Carefully separate the cloves and plant 3 to 4 inches deep.

• Sow broccoli, cauliflower, and cabbage directly in your garden during the 3rd week of August.  Many people suggest starting them indoors a few weeks earlier. 

• Lettuce and spinach can be sown during the 4th week of August

• Sow peas directly around mid-August.

• Sow the usual heat-tolerant veggies like beans, black-eyed peas, corn, squashes, pumpkins, cucumbers, watermelons, and sunflowers, during the 3rd week of July.