Springfield, MO · zone 6b · ~199 frost-free days

When to plant a garden in Springfield.

In Springfield, the typical last spring frost lands around Apr 10 and the first fall frost around Oct 26, giving you about 199 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 Springfield, keyed to your frost.

CropStart indoorsSpring sow / set outFall sow
Tomato, slicingMar 6 to May 6Apr 17 to Jun 17
Lettuce, leafMar 3 to Apr 17Aug 12 to Oct 11
CarrotMar 3 to Apr 5Jul 31 to Aug 26
Bush BeanApr 10 to May 31Jul 12 to Aug 14
Cucumber, slicingApr 17 to Jul 17Jun 25 to Jul 26
Pepper, bellMar 15 to May 6Apr 26 to Jun 17
KaleJan 20 to Feb 17Mar 3 to Mar 31Jul 26 to Sep 10
SpinachFeb 17 to Mar 31Aug 12 to Sep 30

Springfield 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 Springfield 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 65806 in about 60 seconds.