Santa Fe, NM · zone 6b · ~154 frost-free days
When to plant in Santa Fe: frost dates and zone 6b.
In Santa Fe, the typical last spring frost lands around May 9 and the first fall frost around Oct 10, giving you about 154 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 Santa Fe, keyed to your frost.
| Crop | Start indoors | Spring sow / set out | Fall sow |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tomato, slicing | Apr 4 to Jun 3 | May 16 to Jul 15 | — |
| Lettuce, leaf | — | Apr 1 to May 16 | Jul 27 to Sep 25 |
| Carrot | — | Apr 1 to May 4 | Jul 15 to Aug 10 |
| Bush Bean | — | May 9 to Jun 29 | — |
| Cucumber, slicing | — | May 16 to Jul 24 | — |
| Pepper, bell | Apr 13 to Jun 4 | May 25 to Jul 16 | — |
| Kale | Feb 18 to Mar 18 | Apr 1 to Apr 29 | Jul 10 to Aug 25 |
| Spinach | — | Mar 18 to Apr 29 | Jul 27 to Sep 14 |
Santa Fe sits in Zone 6b, 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 Santa Fe 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 87501 in about 60 seconds.
Santa Fe planting questions
What planting zone is Santa Fe, NM?+
Santa Fe is in USDA hardiness zone 6b. Growing zone, gardening zone, and planting zone all mean the same thing: the USDA number, 6b 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 Santa Fe?+
The typical last spring frost in Santa Fe, NM is around May 9. 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 Santa Fe?+
The typical first fall frost in Santa Fe, NM arrives around Oct 10, closing a growing season of roughly 154 frost-free days. Count backward from it to find the last date a fall crop can still finish.
What can I plant now in Santa Fe?+
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 9. The table above shows each crop's window; the free planner turns your ZIP into an exact, dated calendar.