Wondering if it’s too late to plant in your Zone 5 garden? Here’s exactly what you can still plant by frost date, plus fast varieties to try now.

Let’s be honest: an empty row in a fall garden is a rare sight, right up there with a spotless minivan or a weed-free mulch bed. If you’re like me, you’ve probably given up on the weeds by August. There are too many other things to do, like putting up the tomatoes that coming in full force.

But every so often the stars align, the weeds behave, and you actually have space, time and desire to plant something more. So what do you do? Get something in the ground, because Zone 5 gardeners have a longer planting window than you might think.

Start With Your First Frost Date

Every “too late to plant” calculation starts with your average first frost date, not the calendar date. Zone 5 covers a wide range of first frost dates, so check a frost date calculator for your specific zip code rather than relying on the zone alone.

Once you have that date, work backward using the “days to maturity” listed on your seed packet, plus a couple of weeks of buffer since fall growth slows down as daylight shortens.

If you’re right on the edge of your frost date and want a little extra insurance, covering your raised beds with a simple hoop and frost blanket setup can buy you several more weeks of growing time, and it’s a project you can put together in an afternoon.

Crops You Can Still Plant Late Summer to Early Fall

Quick Greens (Plant Into Early September)

These mature fast enough to fit into almost any leftover garden space:

• Spinach: Bloomsdale Long Standing is the classic savoyed variety and slow to bolt, while Space is a smooth-leaf option that matures in around 37 days
• Lettuce: Black Seeded Simpson is one of the fastest loose-leaf varieties, and Salad Bowl offers a cut-and-come-again habit that keeps producing
• Radishes: Cherry Belle is the standard fast round radish at about 22 days, or try French Breakfast for a mild, elongated variety
• Arugula: Astro is one of the fastest greens available and slower to bolt than wild arugula types
• Mustard greens: Southern Giant Curled can be harvested baby-leaf well before full maturity, or try Red Giant for striking purple-red color

Root Vegetables (Plant by Mid-to-Late August)

Root crops need more time to size up, so don’t wait too long on these:

• Carrots: most varieties take 70-80 days to mature, so they need to go in by late July to early August in Zone 5, not late August. Napoli is one of the faster options at around 58 days if you’re getting a later start, while Danvers takes closer to 75 days but stores well. The good news is carrots tolerate frost well and actually get sweeter after a cold snap, so they can stay in the ground past your first light frost rather than needing to be harvested before it
• Beets: Detroit Dark Red takes about 70 days to reach full size, so plant by late July to early August rather than mid-August. Like carrots, beets tolerate light frost well, so a slightly late planting still has some cushion. Golden runs a similar timeline and offers a milder, less earthy flavor without staining like red beets do
• Turnips: Hakurei is a fast salad turnip ready in about 38 days, good raw or roasted, or try Purple Top White Globe or a classic storage variety that still fits an August planting

Cold-Hardy Greens (Plant Through Late August)

Kale, collards, and Swiss chard tolerate frost well and often improve in flavor after a cold snap, so these are a good bet even if your window feels tight.

• Kale: Dwarf Blue Curled Vates is compact, extremely cold-hardy, and one of the most popular varieties for fall gardens, while Red Russian has a milder flavor and tender leaves
• Collards: Georgia Southern is a heat and cold-tolerant heirloom that’s been a garden staple for generations
• Swiss chard: Bright Lights offers colorful stems with a mild flavor that also make for good garden photos, or try Fordhook Giant for a heavier-yielding classic variety

Quick Herbs (Plant Into Early September)

A few herbs grow fast enough to fit into a late-season garden and tolerate cooler temperatures better than most people expect:

• Cilantro: Calypso is slow to bolt and ready for baby-leaf harvest in as little as 21 days, and cooler fall weather actually helps it avoid bolting the way it does in summer heat
• Dill: Bouquet is a widely available variety that matures in about 40 days, tolerates light frost well, and produces plenty of both foliage and seed heads
• Chervil: a cold-hardy, fast-growing herb with a mild anise flavor that actually prefers cooler weather over summer heat
• Arugula: already covered above as a quick green, but worth remembering it doubles as a peppery herb for salads and garnishes

Parsley is worth skipping for a late fall planting since it takes 70 to 90 days to mature and won’t have time to establish before frost.

Garlic Is the Exception

Garlic doesn’t follow the same rules as everything else on this list. It actually wants to go in the ground after your first frost, typically in October, so it can establish roots over winter before sending up green shoots in spring. If you’ve written off fall planting entirely, garlic is the crop that proves you shouldn’t.

• Beginner’s Guide to Growing Garlic — planting depth, spacing, and mulching
• 5 Types of Heirloom Garlic to Grow This Fall — variety picks that do well in Zone 5
• What You Need to Know About Harvesting and Curing Garlic — when and how to bring your bulbs in for the best storage life

What to Do Once It’s Truly Too Late

If your frost date has passed and none of the quick crops above will have time to mature, that’s your cue to plant a cover crop like winter rye or clover instead of leaving beds bare. Cover crops protect the soil, suppress weeds, and add organic matter back in before next spring’s planting season starts.

Frequently Asked Questions about Fall Gardens

Related Reading

• 15 Fall Garden Tasks to Do Before Winter Hits — the full checklist for transitioning your garden from fall to winter
• Fall Planting Guide for Show-Stopping Spring Blooms — how and when to plant tulips, daffodils, crocus, and other spring bulbs