Plants · Vegetables
Beet planting dates by zone
Beet (Beta vulgaris) is a cool-season root crop, fairly frost hardy, always grown from seed (University of Illinois and Utah State extensions), so your zone does not decide whether it survives the winter. The dates do. The table below counts each planting date for every zone from its median freeze dates in NOAA records, by a rule a named source states.
Published October 29, 2026 · Cite this page
The types
Which beet to grow
| Type | Examples | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Red globe | ‘Detroit Dark Red’, ‘Early Wonder’, ‘Red Ace’ | UF/IFAS and Utah State both name all three. Illinois says the deep maroon globe is the most common. |
| Golden | ‘Golden’, golden globe types | Utah State and UF/IFAS. Illinois says the golden globe is orange and turns golden yellow when cooked. |
| Striped | ‘Chioggia’ | UF/IFAS names it; Illinois describes the Italian beet with pink and white rings. |
| Long and small | ‘Cylindra’, ‘Little Ball’ | Both on UF/IFAS’s list for Florida gardens. |
None of these types is rated by zone, because each is grown for one season; the notes are the sources’, not a ranking. The planting rules in the next table are a judgement or a source’s rule, and the dates they are counted from are measured.
Zone by zone
When to plant beet in each zone
Each date is the median across every NOAA station the zone’s ZIP codes cite, 1991–2020 normals.
| Zone | Sow outdoors from | Last fall sowing | First fall freeze | Summer highs |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3a | only 10 stations with comparable freeze dates — too few to publish a date | |||
| 3b | April 20 | August 10 | September 23 | 71–80 °F |
| 4a | April 17 | August 14 | September 27 | 74–82 °F |
| 4b | April 13 | August 17 | September 30 | 74–83 °F |
| 5a | April 11 | August 19 | October 2 | 75–85 °F |
| 5b | April 6 | August 25 | October 8 | 76–86 °F |
| 6a | April 3 | August 31 | October 14 | 77–88 °F |
| 6b | March 28 | September 6 | October 20 | 79–89 °F |
| 7a | March 22 | September 9 | October 23 | 80–91 °F |
| 7b | March 11 | September 16 | October 30 | 81–92 °F |
| 8a | March 2 | September 22 | November 5 | 85–95 °F |
| 8b | February 20 | September 29 | November 12 | 77–95 °F |
| 9a | February 5 | October 11 | November 24 | 78–98 °F |
| 9b | January 15 | October 25 | December 8 | 76–103 °F |
| 10a | 107 of 190 stations here record no ordinary freeze, so there is no freeze date to count from | |||
| 10b | 70 of 79 stations here record no ordinary freeze, so there is no freeze date to count from | |||
| 11a | 34 of 34 stations here record no ordinary freeze, so there is no freeze date to count from | |||
| 11b | 12 of 12 stations here record no ordinary freeze, so there is no freeze date to count from | |||
- Sow outdoors from: 4 weeks before the median last spring freeze (this site’s crop table, as on When to start my seeds).
- Last fall sowing: 44 days before the median first fall freeze: 58 days from sowing to harvest less the 14 days of light frost it takes (this site’s crop table, as on What can I still plant).
- First fall freeze: the median first fall freeze (NOAA).
- Summer highs: the mean June to August daily high, from the 10th to the 90th percentile station (NOAA).
A zone does not tell you your own dates. Inside a single zone the median last spring freeze still varies by 34 days from station to station, so the box below gives the dates of the NOAA station nearest your ZIP code.
Your ZIP code
Your ZIP, your answer
Enter your ZIP code to see your USDA zone, the planting dates for that zone, read from the table on this page, and the freeze dates of the NOAA station nearest you.
Your answer appears here.
Full details for any ZIP code: ZIP code zone finder.
When beets go in
University of Illinois Extension says beets are fairly frost hardy and can be planted 30 days before the frost-free date, and that the seedlings establish more easily in cool, moist weather even though beets grow well in warm weather. Utah State University Extension plants 2 to 3 weeks before the last frost and says beets taste best after several weeks of cool, frosty weather.
The table dates spring sowing 4 weeks before each zone’s median last spring freeze, the offset our seed-starting tool uses, which matches Illinois’s 30 days.
Keep sowing. Illinois makes successive plantings every 3 to 4 weeks until midsummer for a steady supply of young beets, and waters later plantings to get them up; Utah State plants every 2 to 3 weeks.
Sowing and thinning
Illinois explains why beets come up crowded: the “seed” is a dried fruit holding a cluster of seeds, so several seedlings can grow from each one. It plants about 1/2 inch deep and one inch apart and warns that planting too deep, or a crust after heavy rain, gives poor stands; Utah State plants 1/2 to 1 inch deep and keeps the surface moist.
Thinning is almost always needed, Illinois says: to 1 to 3 inches apart, and if you wait until the plants are 3 inches tall the thinnings can be cooked as greens. Utah State thins to 3 to 4 inches in rows 12 to 18 inches apart; UF/IFAS overseeds one inch apart and thins to two to four inches.
Illinois and Utah State both say beets compete poorly with weeds and have shallow roots, so weed early and shallowly; deep cultivation damages the roots.
Soil, water and feeding
Utah State grows beets in fertile, deep, well-drained soil and amends heavy soil with plenty of compost so the roots can develop. Illinois says root crops need fertile soil, especially high in potassium, and an even supply of moisture.
Utah State says moisture swings crack the roots and slow growth, and water stress in the first 6 weeks can bring early flowering and a small crop. It side-dresses with nitrogen 6 weeks after emergence, and says beets need enough boron: black, sunken spots on or in the root usually mean the soil is short of it.
Planting for fall
The table’s last fall sowing counts back 44 days from each zone’s median first fall freeze: our crop table’s 58 days from sowing to harvest less the 14 days of light frost beets take. Texas A&M AgriLife sows fall beets 8 to 10 weeks before the first freeze.
Utah State harvests beets before heavy frosts or freezes. Illinois says beets for outdoor storage pits must be dug before the ground freezes in the fall.
Southern timing
In Florida beets are a fall-to-winter crop. UF/IFAS plants them in North Florida from August through February, in Central Florida from September through February and in South Florida from October through January, and calls that long window ideal for succession planting. Texas A&M AgriLife sows beets 4 to 6 weeks before the frost-free date in spring and 8 to 10 weeks before the first freeze in fall, 2 inches apart in rows 14 to 24 inches apart, with 50 to 60 days to harvest.
Harvest
Illinois says beets take about 60 days to reach 1½ inches across, a common size for cooking whole, and grow quickly to 3 inches with enough water and room; larger than that, most varieties turn tough and fibrous. Utah State says roots mature 60 to 80 days from seeding and grow more fibrous as they enlarge; UF/IFAS gives 50 to 70 days.
Utah State loosens the soil with a digging fork and pulls the plants up by the tops. Illinois cuts the tops off leaving an inch of stem and the taproot on the beet, because greens left on draw moisture out of the root and shrivel it. Utah State picks beet leaves for cooking when they are 4 to 6 inches tall.
Supplies
Supplies the sources mention
Each link opens an Amazon search for a plain kind of product, not one we picked. We have not tested these, and we do not rank them.
As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. It costs you nothing extra and changes nothing on this page: the dates are NOAA’s and the advice is the extension services’. Affiliate disclosure
- Garden digging forkUtah State loosens the soil with a digging fork before pulling beets up by the tops.
Common problems
Tops but no roots come from crowding. Illinois says the most frequent cause is too little thinning, and Utah State that beets need room to form a bulb. Woody roots, Utah State says, come from hot weather and water stress; it also says beets planted too early can be chilled into flowering instead of forming a root.
Utah State says beets have few pests: leaf miners leave lacy trails in the leaves but do not reduce the crop much, flea beetles chew holes in seedlings, leaf spots follow long wet spells late in the year, and root rots follow poor drainage. Rotating the planting spot each year helps, it says, and plants short of boron are more open to root diseases.
Common mistakes
- Skipping the thinning. Illinois says crowding is the usual reason for tops with no roots.
- Planting too deep. Illinois says it, and a soil crust, cause poor stands.
- Letting roots grow too big. Illinois says beets past 3 inches often turn tough and fibrous.
- Uneven watering. Utah State says moisture swings crack the roots.
- Storing beets with the tops on. Illinois says the greens draw moisture from the root.
We found no beet source for South Carolina, Louisiana, Alabama or Mississippi that we read for this page. The Southern timing here is UF/IFAS’s and Texas A&M AgriLife’s.
Questions
- When should I plant beets in spring?
- University of Illinois Extension plants 30 days before the frost-free date. The table on this page dates spring sowing 4 weeks before each zone’s median last spring freeze, from NOAA records.
- Why do my beets have leaves but no roots?
- Illinois says the most frequent cause is overcrowding from too little thinning; Utah State says beets need room to form a bulb.
- How far apart should beets be thinned?
- Illinois thins to 1 to 3 inches, Utah State to 3 to 4 inches, and UF/IFAS to two to four inches. Each beet seed is a cluster, Illinois explains, so several seedlings come up together.
- How big should beets be when I pull them?
- Illinois says about 60 days brings beets to 1½ inches across, and most varieties turn tough past 3 inches. Utah State harvests as soon as the roots begin to size.
- When is the last time to sow beets for fall?
- The table’s last fall sowing is 44 days before each zone’s median first fall freeze. Texas A&M AgriLife sows fall beets 8 to 10 weeks before the first freeze.
Sources
Freeze dates on this page are NOAA 1991–2020 Climate Normals, for every station the ZIP codes in each zone cite. Zones are the USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map, 2023. The planting rules are named beside the table. Growing advice is quoted from the extension publications below, each written for its own area.
- University of Illinois Extension, Beet (Home Vegetable Gardening) . Written for: Illinois (USDA zones 5a–7a).
- Utah State University Extension, How to Grow Beets in Your Garden , by Dan Drost (Published May 2020). Written for: Utah (USDA zones 4a, 5a, 5b, 6a, 6b, 7a, 7b, 8a, 8b).
- UF/IFAS Gardening Solutions, Beets (Accessed October 2026). Written for: Florida (USDA zones 8b–11b).
- Texas A&M AgriLife Extension, Texas Home Vegetable Gardening Guide (EHT-077) , by Joseph Masabni (June 2014). Written for: Texas (USDA zones 6b–10b).
Published October 29, 2026
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- All plant guides — fruit, vegetables, herbs, flowers, shrubs and trees
- ZIP code zone finder — your exact USDA zone, and your nearest NOAA station’s freeze dates
- When to start my seeds — the spring calendar for 32 crops, anchored on the same measured last-freeze dates
- What can I still plant — what still has time to grow before your first fall freeze
- When to sow again — succession dates for beet and the other crops worth re-sowing
- How to Protect Plants from Frost: Covers, Timing, Temps — covering tender plants on a frosty night
- Your Hardiness Zone Is Not a Planting Date — why the zone and the freeze dates are different questions