When to plant cabbage in Houston

Where are you growing?

Tight fit

Not realistic in greenhouse

Tight fit in a cold frame

Cabbage in Houston is doable with planning outdoors. 98 suitable days are enough for fast varieties (60 days) but not slow ones (100 days).

Start indoors: December 7 – January 31
Transplant outside: January 18 – March 14
Harvest: March 19 – June 22
Season vs crop: 98 grow days vs 60–100 needed

Cabbage in Houston is doable with planning outdoors. 98 suitable days are enough for fast varieties (60 days) but not slow ones (100 days).

Start seeds indoors December 7 – January 31, then transplant January 18 – March 14 so the crop can finish outdoors.

Planting conditions

Start indoors
Harden off
Transplant outside
Grow outdoors
Harvest

Local activity windows for this place and growing method.

Suitable growing days in a row98

Days to harvest60–100 days from transplant

Dec 7 – Jan 31

Start indoors

Jan 11 – Jan 17

Harden off

January 18

Transplant outside

Jan 19 – Mar 18

Grow outdoors

Mar 19 – Jun 22

Harvest

Activity	Window	Notes
Start indoors	Dec 7 – Jan 31	Sow indoors before the outdoor window.
Harden off	Jan 11 – Jan 17	Acclimate seedlings outdoors before planting.
Transplant outside	January 18	Move plants outside on this day (start of the plant-out window).
Grow outdoors	Jan 19 – Mar 18	Plants grow outdoors until harvest.
Harvest	Mar 19 – Jun 22	Expected 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.

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 days365

Earliest indoor seed startDecember 7

Latest indoor seed startJanuary 31

Transplant outdoorsJanuary 18 – March 14

Direct sow windownot recommended here

Suitable growing windowJanuary 18 – April 25 (98 days)

Expected harvestMarch 19 – June 22

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 Houston, 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: Jan 18 – Apr 25 (98 days)

Planting window for Cabbage: Jan 18 – Mar 14 (56 days)

Outdoors: weekly temperatures and windows

Temperatures across the year for Houston. 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.

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 3 · Jan 12 – Jan 18

Average 44 to 63 °F · Possible 21 to 77 °F

Growing: tolerable

Planting: not sowable

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 Houston

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 29.76, -95.37, 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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