Plan your vegetable garden in Virginia

All the statistical weather information you need to prepare a bulletproof plan for your garden in Virginia

Temperature range in Virginia

Virginia has temperatures ranging from 6°F to 94°F, with approximately 220 frost free days.

Virginia has 179 days with average temperature range from 50°F to 90°F that are suitable for growing warm season vegetables and 157 days with average temperature range from 40°F to 80°F that are suitable for growing cool season vegetables

Chart displaying weekly air temperature in Virginia — Virginia air temperature chart based on weather statistics from 2019 to 2023

Total frost free days (after last frost and before first frost)	220
Total days suitable to grow warm season vegetables	179
Total days suitable to grow cool season vegetables	157
Day with highest recorded temperature in past 4 years	July 20: 94°F
Day with lowest recorded temperature in past 4 years	December 24: 6°F
First expected frost date	November 09
Last expected frost date	April 03

Notable temperature facts for gardening in Virginia

Warm season vegetables you can grow in Virginia

Chart displaying days suitable for growing warm season vegetables in Virginia — Days suitable for growing warm season vegetables in Virginia

Warm season vegetables can be planted in Virginia after May 12 when air temperatures are consistently above 50°F (10°C) and soil temperature is above 50°F (10°C)

Good temperature range for warm season vegetables is between 50°F and 90°F. With warm season vegetables it is important to wait until all conditions are optimal, because sudden temperature drop can stun new vegetable growth, this way delaying overall harvest.

Warm season vegetables that can be planted directly into soil in Virginia

Cucumber

Summer squash

Winter squash

Sweet corn

Eggplant

Bell Pepper

Okra

Tomato

Tomatillo

True Melon

Watermelon

Warm season vegetables that need to be started indoors before transplanting outdoors in Virginia

Chayote

Chilli Pepper

Cool season vegetables you can grow in Virginia

Chart displaying days suitable for growing cool season vegetables in Virginia — Days suitable for growing cool season vegetables in Virginia

Cool season vegetables can be planted in Virginia after April 05 when average air temperature is consistently above 40°F (4°C) and soil temperature is above 45°F (7°C)

Good temperature range for cool season vegetables is between 40°F and 80°F. With cool season vegetables it is important to avoid high air temperatures because exposure to high temperatures is most likely to stun growth, cause bitterness and encourage premature bolting in some plants. Plan your cool vegetable planting so they are harvested before hot weather stretch, provide them with additional shading.

Cool season vegetables that can be planted directly into soil in Virginia

Arugula

Beets

Carrot

Kale

Radish

Spinach

Swiss chard

Turnip

Parsley

Chives

Coriander

Kohlrabi

Cool season vegetables that need to be started indoors before transplanting outdoors in Virginia

Peas

Broccoli

Lettuce

Cauliflower

Celery

Rhubarb

Rutabaga

Endive

Artichoke

Parsnip

Leeks

Mustard

Table with days suitable to grow vegetables in Virginia

Tolerable temperature range for cool season vegetables: 40°F to 80°F

Tolerable temperature range for warm season vegetables: 50°F to 90°F

	Week	Average temperature	Possible min and max temperature	Suitable for cool season vegetables	Suitable for warm season vegetables
1	January 01 - January 03	42°F to 55°F	29°F to 66°F	TRUE
2	January 04 - January 10	33°F to 47°F	15°F to 62°F
3	January 11 - January 17	32°F to 45°F	21°F to 65°F
4	January 18 - January 24	28°F to 43°F	12°F to 58°F
5	January 25 - January 31	29°F to 42°F	13°F to 55°F
6	February 01 - February 07	33°F to 49°F	20°F to 65°F
7	February 08 - February 14	34°F to 49°F	22°F to 64°F
8	February 15 - February 21	33°F to 49°F	21°F to 65°F
9	February 22 - February 28	37°F to 54°F	25°F to 73°F
10	March 01 - March 07	37°F to 53°F	20°F to 72°F
11	March 08 - March 14	37°F to 56°F	18°F to 70°F
12	March 15 - March 21	39°F to 57°F	27°F to 75°F	TRUE
13	March 22 - March 28	43°F to 60°F	29°F to 74°F	TRUE
14	March 29 - April 04	41°F to 61°F	27°F to 77°F	TRUE
15	April 05 - April 11	47°F to 66°F	36°F to 79°F	TRUE
16	April 12 - April 18	48°F to 67°F	36°F to 79°F	TRUE
17	April 19 - April 25	47°F to 66°F	35°F to 81°F	TRUE
18	April 26 - May 02	50°F to 68°F	39°F to 81°F	TRUE	TRUE
19	May 03 - May 09	52°F to 69°F	41°F to 81°F	TRUE	TRUE
20	May 10 - May 16	51°F to 68°F	35°F to 80°F	TRUE	TRUE
21	May 17 - May 23	58°F to 76°F	48°F to 88°F	TRUE	TRUE
22	May 24 - May 30	60°F to 76°F	49°F to 88°F	TRUE	TRUE
23	May 31 - June 06	60°F to 79°F	48°F to 87°F	TRUE	TRUE
24	June 07 - June 13	63°F to 78°F	53°F to 87°F	TRUE	TRUE
25	June 14 - June 20	63°F to 79°F	55°F to 91°F	TRUE	TRUE
26	June 21 - June 27	64°F to 81°F	57°F to 90°F		TRUE
27	June 28 - July 04	67°F to 85°F	60°F to 90°F		TRUE
28	July 05 - July 11	69°F to 85°F	61°F to 91°F		TRUE
29	July 12 - July 18	70°F to 87°F	65°F to 92°F		TRUE
30	July 19 - July 25	70°F to 87°F	62°F to 94°F		TRUE
31	July 26 - August 01	70°F to 86°F	64°F to 94°F		TRUE
32	August 02 - August 08	68°F to 83°F	62°F to 89°F		TRUE
33	August 09 - August 15	69°F to 84°F	60°F to 92°F		TRUE
34	August 16 - August 22	67°F to 82°F	60°F to 92°F		TRUE
35	August 23 - August 29	68°F to 83°F	62°F to 92°F		TRUE
36	August 30 - September 05	66°F to 82°F	57°F to 92°F		TRUE
37	September 06 - September 12	65°F to 81°F	57°F to 92°F		TRUE
38	September 13 - September 19	63°F to 78°F	54°F to 87°F	TRUE	TRUE
39	September 20 - September 26	58°F to 74°F	45°F to 87°F	TRUE	TRUE
40	September 27 - October 03	58°F to 73°F	48°F to 90°F	TRUE	TRUE
41	October 04 - October 10	55°F to 70°F	41°F to 81°F	TRUE	TRUE
42	October 11 - October 17	53°F to 68°F	44°F to 80°F	TRUE	TRUE
43	October 18 - October 24	48°F to 65°F	37°F to 76°F	TRUE
44	October 25 - October 31	52°F to 67°F	44°F to 79°F	TRUE	TRUE
45	November 01 - November 07	43°F to 60°F	32°F to 75°F	TRUE
46	November 08 - November 14	44°F to 61°F	25°F to 74°F	TRUE
47	November 15 - November 21	37°F to 53°F	27°F to 68°F
48	November 22 - November 28	39°F to 53°F	29°F to 64°F
49	November 29 - December 05	37°F to 52°F	25°F to 63°F
50	December 06 - December 12	37°F to 50°F	28°F to 64°F
51	December 13 - December 19	35°F to 48°F	24°F to 63°F
52	December 20 - December 26	31°F to 47°F	6°F to 64°F
53	December 27 - December 31	38°F to 52°F	19°F to 63°F

Table with days suitable to grow vegetables in Virginia

Counties in Virginia

For more precise weather statisctics and planting information, please select a County.