Colorado Springs, CO · zone 5b · ~139 frost-free days
When to plant in Colorado Springs: frost dates and zone 5b.
In Colorado Springs, the typical last spring frost lands around May 15 and the first fall frost around Oct 1, giving you about 139 frost-free days. Cool-season crops go out before the last frost; warm-season crops wait until after it.
The 2026 windows
Sow dates for Colorado Springs, keyed to your frost.
| Crop | Start indoors | Spring sow / set out | Fall sow |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tomato, slicing | Apr 10 to May 25 | May 22 to Jul 6 | — |
| Lettuce, leaf | — | Apr 7 to May 22 | Jul 18 to Sep 16 |
| Carrot | — | Apr 7 to May 10 | Jul 6 to Aug 1 |
| Bush Bean | — | May 15 to Jul 5 | — |
| Cucumber, slicing | — | May 22 to Jul 15 | — |
| Pepper, bell | Apr 19 to May 28 | May 31 to Jul 9 | — |
| Kale | Feb 24 to Mar 24 | Apr 7 to May 5 | Jul 1 to Aug 16 |
| Spinach | — | Mar 24 to May 5 | Jul 18 to Sep 5 |
Colorado Springs sits in Zone 5b, but two gardens in the same city can be a week or two apart. The planner works from your ZIP code's frost dates, not the zone, so the dates land right for your block, not the metro average.
Build your Colorado Springs garden plan.
Tell the free planner what you want to eat and who you're feeding. It returns plant counts, spacing, and frost-safe sow dates for ZIP 80903 in about 60 seconds.
Colorado Springs planting questions
What planting zone is Colorado Springs, CO?+
Colorado Springs is in USDA hardiness zone 5b. Growing zone, gardening zone, and planting zone all mean the same thing: the USDA number, 5b here. It tells you what survives winter, not when to plant. Frost dates set your planting time, and the free planner uses your exact ZIP code's frost dates, which can differ by weeks across one metro.
When is the last frost date in Colorado Springs?+
The typical last spring frost in Colorado Springs, CO is around May 15. That is an average from local history, not a guarantee, so tender crops like tomatoes and peppers are safer with a week of buffer after it.
When is the first frost date in Colorado Springs?+
The typical first fall frost in Colorado Springs, CO arrives around Oct 1, closing a growing season of roughly 139 frost-free days. Count backward from it to find the last date a fall crop can still finish.
What can I plant now in Colorado Springs?+
It depends on the date. Cool-season crops like lettuce, kale, and spinach go out weeks before the last frost; warm-season crops like tomatoes and peppers wait until after May 15. The table above shows each crop's window; the free planner turns your ZIP into an exact, dated calendar.