UK planting calendar

How to use it

The calendar opens on the current month, so you can see today's jobs at a glance. Change the month dropdown to look ahead or back, and use the filter box to focus on a single crop — handy when you just want to know when to start your tomatoes or lift your garlic. Each crop appears as a tappable chip under the relevant heading, and many link straight to a full growing guide. Below the month view, the whole-year table colours every crop's active months so you can spot the busy spring and autumn windows at a glance. Your choices are saved in your browser, so the tool remembers where you left off next time.

How the calendar works

Each crop in our database carries typical UK month ranges for four activities: sowing indoors, sowing outdoors, planting out and harvesting. When you pick a month, the tool checks which of those windows that month falls inside and sorts every crop into the right column — a crop can appear in more than one, because you might be sowing one batch while harvesting an earlier one. These windows reflect an average British season; weather, soil, variety and your region all shift them. Gardens in the mild South West can run two to three weeks ahead of a Highland plot, and a greenhouse buys you extra time at both ends. Use the dates as a sensible starting point, then read the seed packet and watch the weather. To pin down the safe planting window for frost-tender crops, pair this with our Frost Date Checker.

Frequently asked questions

What can I sow and plant this month in the UK?

Pick the month at the top of the tool and it lists every crop you can sow indoors, sow outdoors, plant out or harvest right now. In spring the busy jobs are sowing tender crops like tomatoes and courgettes indoors; by autumn it shifts to planting garlic and harvesting roots and squash. The whole-year table shows how each crop moves through the seasons.

Are these dates right for my part of the country?

They are typical averages for a middle-of-the-road UK season, so treat them as guidance. A sheltered southern garden or a greenhouse lets you start a couple of weeks earlier, while a cold northern or upland plot runs a couple of weeks behind. Always cross-check your last frost date — our Frost Date Checker gives a safe window for tender crops by region.

What is the difference between sowing indoors and sowing outdoors?

Sowing indoors means starting seeds in trays or pots on a windowsill, in a heated propagator or in a greenhouse, then planting the young plants out once the risk of frost has passed. Sowing outdoors (direct sowing) means putting seeds straight into the soil where they will grow. Tender crops are usually started indoors; hardy roots and leaves are often sown direct.