A visiting friend from Nashville (recently upgraded from Zone 6 to Zone 7 on the new USDA hardiness map!) reminded me of how different spring planting can be all around the country. She’s been gardening for weeks back at home, while things are just barely getting going here. But this certainly is the time of year that people start to want to plant.
So, what can we plant? Here is an easy summary of spring vegetable planting dates in our Zone 5b Colorado Springs area based on information from Colorado State University Extension (those in Monument, Black Forest, etc may want to add a week or so):
Early March
Start seeds indoors
broccoli
cabbage
cauliflower
Brussels sprouts
seed onions
peppers
Mid March
Start seeds indoors
winter squash
Late March to early April
Start seeds indoors
tomatoes
eggplant
Apr 1
Sow directly outdoors
Snap peas, peas, and pea pods (Though one of our writers, Leslie Holzmann encourages you to wait even a little longer – see her post “Should I Plant Peas Yet?”)
Spinach
Potatoes (seed potatoes)
Early-to-mid Apr
Sow directly outdoors
Lettuce
Mid-Apr
Sow directly outdoors
beets
swiss chard
radishes
onion sets and plants
Transplants (seeds for these should be started indoors in early March)
broccoli
cabbage
cauliflower
Brussels sprouts
Late April
Sow directly outdoors
carrots
Mid-to-late May (soil temps of 60 degrees)
Sow directly outdoors
green beans
corn
parsnips
pumpkins
summer squash
Transplants (seeds for these should be started indoors in March and April)
peppers
tomatoes
Contributed by Carey Harrington, Certified Colorado Gardener & Colorado Native Plant Master
and
Susan Thomas, Certified Colorado Gardener
Pikes Peak Area Garden Help 
March 16, 2012 at 10:40 am
I like to take a calendar and mark it up with last (and first) frost dates, when to start seeds inside, and when to put plants or seeds outside. I try to include everything I intend to grow each year. Otherwise, I find it’s suddenly the end of June and I forgot to plant something.
Now I just have to remember to keep checking the calendar!
March 28, 2012 at 5:01 pm
For seeds started indoors (e.g. tomatoes), how important is it to have them get sun? Do they need to be moved outside during the day, placed by windows, or does it not matter much?
Thanks for your advice.
March 29, 2012 at 10:19 am
Hi Newbie!
Once your tomato seeds germinate, they need to get quite a bit of light. In our area at this time of year, we still aren’t getting quite enough daylight for a windowsill to be a viable option (plus they sometimes cook on the windowsill when the sun is really bright). The best option is to put them under fluorescent lights for sixteen hours each day – a timer really helps here. YOu don’t need fancy grow lights; the basic 40W fluorescent tubes work just fine. A post on starting plants from seed that I wrote might help you too: https://peakgardening.wordpress.com/2009/01/18/starting-from-seed-by-carey-harrington/