Zone 2a planting calendar

What to plant in March: zone 2a

Zone 2a averages its last spring frost around June 5 and its first fall frost around August 20. Everything below is timed from those two dates, so it stays useful whether you're planting for summer or for a fall harvest.

These are zone-average dates. Check an area-level frost estimate from thirty years of nearby weather history and this calendar retimes itself.
Last frost: June 5
First frost: August 20
Winter lows: -50 to -45 °F
Zone 2a Almanac. What growers here actually recorded: sowing weeks, days to first pick, and yields.

Dormant care

  • Sharpen and oil toolsaround Mar 6

    Clean, sharpen and oil blades while there's time. Dull tools bruise plants and slow you down.

  • Prune dormant fruit treesaround Mar 20

    Prune apples, pears and peaches while fully dormant. Open the center, remove crossing wood.

Start indoors

  • Sow microgreens indoorsaround Mar 13

    A tray on the windowsill gives you a cut of fresh greens every 10-14 days through the cold months.

  • Start onions and leeks indoorsaround Mar 27

    Alliums need 10-12 weeks under lights before they go out. The earliest sowing of the year.

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