Planting windows for Santa Cruz
Computed from Santa Cruz's own frost dates. Click any crop for the full zone-10 growing guide — varieties, spacing, fall plantings, and more.
| Crop | Start seeds indoors | Transplant | Direct sow |
|---|---|---|---|
| 🍅 Tomatoes | Dec 4 – Dec 18 | Feb 5 – Feb 12 | — |
| 🫑 Peppers | Nov 20 – Dec 4 | Feb 12 – Feb 19 | — |
| 🥬 Lettuce | Dec 18 – Jan 1 | Jan 1 – Jan 15 | Jan 1 – Jan 29 |
| 🫛 Peas | — | — | Dec 18 – Jan 1 |
| 🥕 Carrots | — | — | Jan 8 – Jan 29 |
| 🥦 Broccoli | Dec 11 – Dec 25 | Jan 8 – Jan 22 | — |
| 🥬 Kale | Dec 18 – Jan 1 | Jan 1 – Jan 15 | Jan 1 – Jan 15 |
| 🥒 Cucumbers | Jan 1 – Jan 8 | Feb 5 – Feb 12 | Feb 5 – Feb 12 |
| 🥒 Zucchini | Jan 1 – Jan 8 | Feb 5 – Feb 12 | Feb 5 – Feb 12 |
| 🫘 Green Beans (Bush) | — | — | Feb 5 – Feb 12 |
| 🌽 Sweet Corn | — | — | Feb 5 – Feb 12 |
| 🌿 Basil | Dec 18 – Jan 1 | Feb 5 – Feb 12 | Feb 12 – Feb 19 |
| 🧄 Garlic | — | — | Fall: Nov 1 – Nov 29 |
Want this for all 50 crops, or as a printable seed-shelf schedule? Use the planting calendar and the seed starting scheduler — both can use Santa Cruz's dates automatically after a lookup.
Reading the season in Santa Cruz
With roughly 318 frost-free days, Santa Cruz gardens fit long-season crops — melons, winter squash, sweet potatoes — with room left for spring and fall rounds of greens and roots. The first frost around Dec 13 is late enough that fall planting is a full second season, not an afterthought.