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When to plant cabbage in San Francisco

How to grow CabbageSan Francisco climate
Where are you growing?

Comfortable

Comfortable in greenhouse

Comfortable in a cold frame

Cabbage in San Francisco is a good fit outdoors. The suitable growing window of 365 days covers the 60–100 days this plant usually needs.

Start indoors
November 20 – January 14
Transplant outside
January 1 – February 25
Harvest
March 2 – June 5
Season vs crop
365 grow days vs 60–100 needed

Cabbage in San Francisco is a good fit outdoors. The suitable growing window of 365 days covers the 60–100 days this plant usually needs.

Planting conditions

Cabbage planting activities across the year: Start indoors, Grow indoors, Harden off, Transplant outside, Grow outdoors, HarvestJFMAMJJASOND
  • Start indoors
  • Grow indoors
  • Harden off
  • Transplant outside
  • Grow outdoors
  • Harvest
Local activity windows for this place and growing method.
Suitable growing days in a row365
Days to harvest60–100 days from transplant
Nov 20 – Jan 14
Start indoors
Jan 15 – Dec 24
Grow indoors
Dec 25 – Dec 31
Harden off
January 1
Transplant outside
Jan 2 – Mar 1
Grow outdoors
Mar 2 – Jun 5
Harvest
ActivityWindowNotes
Start indoorsNov 20 – Jan 14Sow indoors before the outdoor window.
Grow indoorsJan 15 – Dec 24Seedlings grow indoors until harden or transplant.
Harden offDec 25 – Dec 31Acclimate seedlings outdoors before planting.
Transplant outsideJanuary 1Move plants outside on this day (start of the plant-out window).
Grow outdoorsJan 2 – Mar 1Plants grow outdoors until harvest.
HarvestMar 2 – Jun 5Expected harvest from typical days to harvest.
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 (59 – 75 °F) and tolerable (39 – 81 °F) ranges.

Cabbage planting and growing weeks in San FranciscoJANFEBMARAPRMAYJUNJULAUGSEPOCTNOVDECPlantingGrowing
Planting uses sow / plant-out rules (frost, soil germination, night, and last-sow): green when plantable, blue diagonal when nights or soil are too cold, amber cross-hatch when too hot, faint for other calendar limits. Growing shows daytime air against this plant’s ideal and tolerable ranges across the year.

Key dates

Frost-free daysNot yet (short archive)
Earliest indoor seed startNovember 20
Latest indoor seed startJanuary 14
Transplant outdoorsJanuary 1 – February 25
Direct sow windownot recommended here
Suitable growing windowJanuary 1 – December 31 (365 days)
Expected harvestMarch 2 – June 5

How these dates are judged

Ideal conditions
Daytime air from 59 – 75 °F.
Suitable conditions
Daytime air from 39 – 81 °F.
Last frost and first frost
Typical spring and fall frost dates for San Francisco, 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. The year strip and weekly chart use the same window: air ratings only colour weeks inside it.

Growing window for Cabbage: All year (365 days)

Planting window for Cabbage: Jan 1 – Feb 25 (56 days)

Outdoors: weekly temperatures and windows

Temperatures across the year for San Francisco. Shaded bands are this plant’s ideal and tolerable daytime air ranges. Growing is daytime air suitability; Planting is sow / plant-out conditions (same colour language). Window brackets mark each stretch.

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec−10 °C14 °F0 °C32 °F10 °C50 °F20 °C68 °F30 °C86 °F40 °C104 °FTolerable 4–27 °CTolerable 39–81 °FIdeal 15–24 °CIdeal 59–75 °FWindowGrowingAll yearPlantingJan 1 – Feb 25No typical frost here. Timing follows heat, not frost.
  • Ideal range
  • Tolerable range
  • Possible min to max
  • Average min to max
  • Suitable
  • Tolerable
  • Too cold
  • Too hot

Selected week · tap a week or use the arrows

Week 1 · Jan 1 – Jan 4

Average 44 to 56 °F · Possible 33 to 60 °F

Growing: tolerable

Planting: suitable

A week is in range when its average low and high sit inside the tolerance band 39 to 81 °F; it is suitable when that average range also overlaps the ideal 59 to 75 °F band and possible readings stay within 39 °F to 81 °F. Crossing a possible limit, or missing the ideal band, makes it tolerable; a possible low below 39 °F makes it tolerable. When a sowing window is calculated, weeks outside that window are uncoloured even if air is in range.

Based on average frost dates.

Show all 53 weeks
Cover method weekly charts

Outdoor weekly chart is above. Open a cover chart only if you grow under fleece, a cold frame, or an unheated greenhouse.

Other plants for San Francisco

Calculated by Plan & Plant · Method · Data 2019–2026

Frost and suitability dates are typical figures from climate statistics. Microclimates vary; they are not a guarantee.

How we calculated this
  • Data: ERA5-Land via Open-Meteo, cell 37.77, -122.42, years 2019–2026 (not a 30-year climate normal yet).
  • Typical and safer dates: Typical last frost is the date after which half of winters in this sample had no more frost; safer is later in the sample so fewer winters still frosted.
  • Crop rule: Local windows for Cabbage from frost dates, temperature ratings, and crop timing rules.
  • Confidence: Provisional — short or thin sample for this place.
  • Full methodology (algorithm 2026-10-season-6).

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