What to Plant in April in Zone 8
Here is what you can sow in April if you garden in USDA zone 8. Dates use typical zone 8 frosts, so your own microclimate may shift them by a week or two.
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| Crop | Window | Sow between |
|---|---|---|
| Tomato, slicingBig Beef | spring | Apr 1 – Jun 1 |
| Tomato, cherrySun Gold | spring | Apr 1 – Jun 1 |
| Tomato, pasteAmish Paste | spring | Apr 1 – Jun 1 |
| Pepper, bellAce | spring | Apr 10 – Jun 1 |
| Pepper, hotJalapeño | spring | Apr 10 – Jun 1 |
| EggplantNadia | spring | Apr 15 – Jun 1 |
| Cucumber, slicingMarketmore 76 | spring | Apr 1 – Jul 1 |
| Cucumber, picklingExcelsior | spring | Apr 1 – Jul 1 |
| Squash, summerZucchini Dunja | spring | Apr 1 – Jul 15 |
| WatermelonCrimson Sweet | spring | Apr 15 – Jun 1 |
| CantaloupeHale's Best | spring | Apr 15 – Jun 1 |
| OkraClemson Spineless | spring | Apr 15 – Jun 15 |
| Sweet CornInspiration | spring | Apr 1 – Jul 1 |
| Bush BeanProvider | spring | Mar 25 – May 15 |
| Pole BeanKentucky Wonder | spring | Apr 1 – Jun 1 |
| BasilGenovese | spring | Apr 15 – Jul 1 |
| CilantroCalypso | spring | Feb 15 – Apr 1 |
| ParsleyItalian Flat-Leaf | spring | Feb 15 – Apr 1 |
| Lettuce, leafSalad Bowl | spring | Feb 15 – Apr 1 |
| ArugulaAstro | spring | Feb 15 – Apr 1 |
| Swiss ChardBright Lights | spring | Mar 1 – Apr 15 |
| RadishCherry Belle | spring | Feb 15 – Apr 1 |
| Onion, bunchingEvergreen | spring | Feb 15 – Apr 1 |
| Lima Bean (Bush)Henderson | spring | Apr 1 – May 24 |
| Edamame (Soybean)Envy | spring | Apr 1 – May 29 |
| Southern Pea (Black-Eyed Pea)California Blackeye No. 5 | spring | Apr 8 – Jun 8 |
| Garbanzo Bean (Chickpea)Sierra | spring | Mar 11 – Apr 15 |
| Bean, dryPinto | spring | Apr 1 – May 24 |
| Corn, dent (grinding)Reid's Yellow Dent | spring | Apr 1 – May 9 |
| Amaranth, grainGolden Giant | spring | Apr 8 – May 14 |
| Sorghum, grainMennonite | spring | Apr 8 – May 14 |
| Pigeon peaGeorgia-2 (early dwarf) | spring | Apr 8 – May 4 |
| Amaranth LeafRed Garnet | spring | Mar 25 – Apr 15 |
| New Zealand SpinachCommon | spring | Mar 25 – Apr 8 |
| TomatilloToma Verde | spring | Apr 1 – Jun 1 |
| Ground CherryAunt Molly's | spring | Apr 1 – Jun 1 |
| Honeydew MelonEarli-Dew | spring | Apr 15 – Jun 1 |
| Spaghetti SquashTivoli | spring | Apr 15 – Jun 8 |
| Acorn SquashTable Queen | spring | Apr 15 – Jun 8 |
| Luffa GourdSmooth Luffa | spring | Apr 15 – Jun 8 |
| Sunflower, confectionMammoth Grey Stripe | spring | Apr 8 – Jun 8 |
| Strawberry, day-neutralAlbion | spring | Mar 11 – Apr 15 |
| Pepper, bananaSweet Banana | spring | Apr 10 – Jun 1 |
| Pepper, poblanoPoblano | spring | Apr 10 – Jun 1 |
| Pepper, serranoSerrano Tampiqueno | spring | Apr 10 – Jun 1 |
| Pepper, cayenneLong Slim | spring | Apr 10 – Jun 1 |
| Pepper, shishitoShishito | spring | Apr 10 – Jun 1 |
| Pepper, habaneroOrange Habanero | spring | Apr 10 – Jun 1 |
| DillFernleaf | spring | Mar 18 – May 6 |
| OreganoGreek | spring | Mar 18 – May 6 |
| ThymeEnglish | spring | Mar 18 – May 6 |
| RosemaryTuscan Blue | spring | Mar 25 – May 6 |
| SageBroadleaf | spring | Mar 25 – May 6 |
| MintSpearmint | spring | Mar 25 – May 20 |
| ChivesCommon | spring | Mar 11 – May 6 |
| TarragonFrench | spring | Apr 15 – Jun 3 |
| MarjoramSweet Marjoram | spring | Apr 8 – Jun 17 |
| ChervilCurled | spring | Mar 4 – Apr 8 |
| Lemon BalmCommon | spring | Apr 8 – Jun 3 |
| Summer SavoryCommon | spring | Apr 8 – Jun 17 |
| BlueberryBluecrop (northern highbush) | spring | Mar 11 – Apr 24 |
| Raspberry, redHeritage (everbearing) | spring | Mar 4 – Apr 8 |
| BlackberryTriple Crown (thornless) | spring | Mar 11 – Apr 15 |
| Strawberry, June-bearingHoneoye | spring | Mar 11 – Apr 15 |
| GooseberryHinnonmaki Red | spring | Mar 4 – Apr 8 |
| Haskap (Honeyberry)Borealis | spring | Feb 23 – Apr 1 |
| ElderberryAdams | spring | Mar 11 – Apr 24 |
| AsparagusJersey Knight | spring | Mar 4 – Apr 8 |
| RhubarbVictoria | spring | Feb 23 – Apr 8 |
| HorseradishBig Top | spring | Mar 11 – Apr 24 |
| Sunchoke (Jerusalem Artichoke)Stampede | spring | Mar 4 – Apr 15 |
| Artichoke, globeImperial Star | spring | Feb 25 – Apr 1 |
| GingerBaby Ginger (Hawaiian) | spring | Apr 24 – May 24 |
| TurmericHawaiian Red | spring | Apr 24 – May 24 |
| PeanutValencia | spring | Apr 8 – May 9 |
| LavenderMunstead (English) | spring | Mar 25 – May 6 |
| LemongrassWest Indian | spring | Apr 15 – May 24 |
| Bay LaurelSweet Bay | spring | Apr 8 – May 24 |
| BorageCommon | spring | Mar 25 – Jun 3 |
| SteviaSweet Leaf | spring | Apr 8 – May 9 |
| Catmint (Catnip)Nepeta cataria | spring | Mar 25 – May 24 |
| Shiso (Perilla)Britton | spring | Apr 15 – Jun 3 |
| Scarlet Runner BeanScarlet Emperor | spring | Apr 1 – May 24 |
| PopcornRobust Pop | spring | Apr 1 – May 24 |
| Cucamelon (Mouse Melon)Melothria scabra | spring | Apr 8 – May 24 |
| Malabar SpinachRed Stem | spring | Apr 15 – Jun 3 |
| Tomato | spring | Apr 1 – Jun 1 |
| Pepper, sweet | spring | Apr 10 – Jun 1 |
| Cucumber | spring | Apr 1 – Jul 1 |
| Bean | spring | Mar 25 – May 15 |
| Lettuce | spring | Feb 15 – Apr 1 |
| NasturtiumJewel Mix | spring | Mar 25 – May 6 |
| Calendula (Pot Marigold)Resina | spring | Mar 4 – Apr 8 |
| Chamomile, GermanCommon | spring | Mar 11 – Apr 22 |
| Cress, gardenCurled | spring | Feb 15 – Apr 8 |
| Currant, redRed Lake | spring | Mar 4 – Apr 8 |
Zone 8 in April
Warm Season, Already
Not a Hinge Month, a Deep One
By the time this month opens, your average last frost, typically in late March, is already a week or more behind you. That changes the shape of the month entirely: instead of cool and warm crops colliding at once, this is already deep warm-season planting. Tomato, pepper, eggplant, cucumber, squash, melon, corn, and beans all fill the table, pushing the crop count to its widest point of the year, just short of a hundred.
Harden off transplants over 7 to 10 days regardless of how warm it feels; a seedling raised under grow lights can scorch in full outdoor sun within hours even when the air temperature itself poses no risk.
Tomato transplants set out this month should go in with the lower third of the stem buried. Roots that sprout along the buried stem give the plant a stronger foundation than one planted at the same depth it grew in its pot.
Around Thirty Crops Close This Month
A long list of March's cool-season crops, cilantro, parsley, arugula, chard, radish, strawberries, asparagus, rhubarb, and the spring herbs among them, all get their last realistic sowing date this month. Beyond it, rising heat either bolts them to seed or leaves too little season left to size up before summer arrives in force.
Pepper and eggplant transplants are pickier about a cold snap than tomatoes are, even though the soil number both want, about 60 degrees measured 4 to 6 inches down at transplant depth, is close to the same. Hold them a week or two behind tomato transplants whenever a cool night is still in the forecast, since a stalled pepper start rarely catches back up the way a stalled tomato does.
Sweet corn planted this month should go in blocks of at least 4 rows rather than one long row. Corn is wind-pollinated, and a block shape catches far more drifting pollen than a thin strip does.
April in zone 8: common questions
What can I plant in April in zone 8?+
In April, USDA zone 8 gardeners can sow Tomato, slicing, Tomato, cherry, Tomato, paste, Pepper, bell, Pepper, hot, Eggplant, and more. Dates use typical zone 8 frosts, so your own microclimate may shift them by a week or two.
What USDA hardiness zone am I in?+
Zone 8 is one band of the map, but planting time is set by your local frost dates, not the zone number. Enter your ZIP code in the free planner and it uses your actual frost dates, which can differ by weeks within a single zone.
Are these April planting dates exact?+
They are typical zone 8 windows. Two gardens in the same zone can be a week or two apart because of elevation and local climate, so treat these as a starting point and tune them to your ZIP code with the free planner.