When to plant chili pepper in Ottawa

In Ottawa, typical last spring frost is April 28 and typical first fall frost is October 29. Typical last spring frost: April 28. Chili pepper in Ottawa is doable with planning outdoors. 83 suitable days are enough for fast varieties (60 days) but not slow ones (100 days).

Chili pepper

How to grow Chili pepper Ottawa climate Weekly temperatures and windows

Where are you growing?

Tight fit

Tight fit in greenhouse

Comfortable in a cold frame

Chili pepper in Ottawa is doable with planning outdoors. 83 suitable days are enough for fast varieties (60 days) but not slow ones (100 days).

Start indoors: March 25 – April 4
Transplant outside: May 27 – June 6
Harvest: July 26 – October 17
Season vs crop: 83 grow days vs 60–100 needed
Typical frost (last spring – first fall): April 28 – October 29

Chili pepper in Ottawa is doable with planning outdoors. 83 suitable days are enough for fast varieties (60 days) but not slow ones (100 days).

Start seeds indoors March 25 – April 4, transplant May 27 – June 6, and a faster variety can still make a harvest outdoors (83 suitable growing days cover the 60-day short end).

Planting conditions

Start indoors
Grow indoors
Harden off
Transplant outside
Grow outdoors
Harvest

Local activity windows for this place and growing method. Blue fill is usually too cold for this plant. Dashed lines are typical last and first frost.

Suitable growing days in a row83

Days to harvest60–100 days from transplant

Mar 25 – Apr 4

Start indoors

Apr 5 – May 19

Grow indoors

May 20 – May 26

Harden off

May 27

Transplant outside

May 28 – Jul 25

Grow outdoors

Jul 26 – Oct 17

Harvest

Activity	Window	Notes
Start indoors	Mar 25 – Apr 4	Sow indoors before the outdoor window.
Grow indoors	Apr 5 – May 19	Seedlings grow indoors until harden or transplant.
Harden off	May 20 – May 26	Acclimate seedlings outdoors before planting.
Transplant outside	May 27	Move plants outside on this day (start of the plant-out window).
Grow outdoors	May 28 – Jul 25	Plants grow outdoors until harvest.
Harvest	Jul 26 – Oct 17	Expected harvest from typical days to harvest.

Start indoors
Grow indoors
Harden off
Transplant outside
Grow outdoors
Harvest

Blue fill is usually too cold for this plant. Dashed lines are typical last and first frost (35 seasons (1991–2025)). Adjust a week or two for your conditions.

Planting and growing across the year

Planting is the sow / plant-out window. Growing is daytime air versus this plant’s ideal (21 – 32 °C70 – 90 °F21 – 32 °C (70 – 90 °F)) and tolerable (16 – 35 °C61 – 95 °F16 – 35 °C (61 – 95 °F)) ranges.

Ideal / plantable
Tolerable
Too cold
Too hot
Outside window

Planting uses sow / plant-out rules; growing shows daytime air against this plant’s ideal and tolerable ranges.

Key dates

Typical last spring frostApril 28

Low-risk last spring frostMay 8

Typical first fall frostOctober 29

Low-risk first fall frostOctober 17

Frost-free days183

Earliest indoor seed startMarch 25

Latest indoor seed startApril 4

Transplant outdoorsMay 27 – June 6

Direct sow windownot recommended here

Suitable growing windowMay 27 – August 17 (83 days)

Expected harvestJuly 26 – October 17

How these dates are judged

Ideal conditions: Daytime air from 21 – 32 °C70 – 90 °F21 – 32 °C (70 – 90 °F).
Suitable conditions: Daytime air from 16 – 35 °C61 – 95 °F16 – 35 °C (61 – 95 °F).
Last frost and first frost: Typical spring and fall frost dates for Ottawa, shown in the key dates.
Days to harvest: 60–100 days from transplant, from typical days to harvest.
Sowing window: Dated sow and harvest bars use frost dates, soil minima, night limits, and last-sow count-back from typical crop timing. Air ratings on the weekly chart colour only weeks inside that same window — see weekly temperatures and windows.

Other plants for Ottawa

Calculated by Plan & Plant. Method. Data 35 seasons (1991–2025).

Frost and suitability dates are typical figures from climate statistics.

Based on 35 years (1991–2025) of ERA5-Land data from Open-Meteo, for an area of about 10 km. Typical dates, not a guarantee.

Dates for Ottawa use ERA5-Land cell 45.41, -75.70. How we calculated this · Algorithm 2026-10-season-10.

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