When to plant chili pepper in Austin

In Austin, typical last spring frost is February 15 and typical first fall frost is December 17. Typical last spring frost: February 15. Chili pepper in Austin is a good fit outdoors. The suitable growing window of 122 days covers the 60–100 days this plant usually needs.

Chili pepper

How to grow Chili pepper Austin climate Weekly temperatures and windows

Where are you growing?

Comfortable

Tight fit in greenhouse

Comfortable in a cold frame

Chili pepper in Austin is a good fit outdoors. The suitable growing window of 122 days covers the 60–100 days this plant usually needs.

Start indoors: January 20 – March 16
Transplant outside: March 24 – May 18
Harvest: May 23 – August 26
Season vs crop: 122 grow days vs 60–100 needed
Typical frost (last spring – first fall): February 15 – December 17

Chili pepper in Austin is a good fit outdoors. The suitable growing window of 122 days covers the 60–100 days this plant usually needs.

Planting conditions

Start 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 row122

Days to harvest60–100 days from transplant

Jan 20 – Mar 16

Start indoors

Mar 17 – Mar 23

Harden off

March 24

Transplant outside

Mar 25 – May 22

Grow outdoors

May 23 – Aug 26

Harvest

Activity	Window	Notes
Start indoors	Jan 20 – Mar 16	Sow indoors before the outdoor window.
Harden off	Mar 17 – Mar 23	Acclimate seedlings outdoors before planting.
Transplant outside	March 24	Move plants outside on this day (start of the plant-out window).
Grow outdoors	Mar 25 – May 22	Plants grow outdoors until harvest.
Harvest	May 23 – Aug 26	Expected harvest from typical days to harvest.

Start 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 frostFebruary 15

Low-risk last spring frostMarch 10

Typical first fall frostDecember 17

Low-risk first fall frostNovember 18

Frost-free days304

Earliest indoor seed startJanuary 20

Latest indoor seed startMarch 16

Transplant outdoorsMarch 24 – May 18

Direct sow windownot recommended here

Suitable growing windowMarch 24 – July 23 (122 days)

Expected harvestMay 23 – August 26

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 Austin, 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 Austin

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 Austin use ERA5-Land cell 30.27, -97.74. How we calculated this · Algorithm 2026-10-season-10.

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