We're Having a Colder Than Average Year

Soil temperatures control when different seeds will germinate. Cool-season vegetables, such as peas, carrots, lettuce, spinach, and mustard will germinate when soil temperatures are cool, from about 45 - 60 degrees Fahrenheit. Warm-season vegetables such as tomatoes, peppers, squash, amaranth, and cucumbers like to germinate when soil temperatures are above about 65 degrees Fahrenheit. Some farmers get a jump-start by starting their Summer vegetables in a warm greenhouse, in a sunny indoor window, or by using a heat mat. Our farm, however, gardens naturally outdoors by the seasons and we grow our seedlings in composty soil in flats on the ground.