If indoor seed starting is not your thing, but you still want to have the variety and cost effectiveness of seeds, you can direct sow your seeds directly into the garden. If you are planting in mulch, be sure to open a hole in the mulch, plant the seed to the depth on the seed packet and cover with potting soil. Mulch can form a hard crust that only the strongest seedling (like beans and squash) can break through.
Here is the by-month seed sowing calendar for our Zone 6 garden. There are so many early and late varieties available that you should consult the seed packet on the best outdoor sowing times (always listed as the weeks before your last frost date).
February
(as soon as soil can be worked)
Asparagus
Fruit trees and bushes
Garlic
Grapes
Peas
Shallots
March
Arugula
Asparagus
Beets
Broccoli
Cabbage
Carrots
Chamomile
Chives
Collards
Cress
Fava beans
Fruit bushes
Kale
Kohlrabi
Leek
Lettuce (sow every 2 weeks if you are a salad lover for continuous salads)
Mache (corn salad)
Mustard
Onion
Parsnips
Peas
Potatoes
Rhubarb
Spinach (sow every 2 weeks through early May)
Turnips
April
Artichoke
Beans (snap-bush & pole)
Bee balm (monarda)
Borage
Broccoli
Brussels sprouts
Carrots
Catnip
Cauliflower
Celeriac
Celery
Chard
Cilantro
Corn
Cucumber
Dill
Endive
Fennel
Fruit bushes
Horseradish
Lavender
Lemon balm
Lettuce
Lovage
Mizuna
Mustard
Onions
Parsley
Potatoes
Radicchio
Radishes
Spinach
Summer squash (like zucchini)
Tarragon
Thyme
Valerian
May
Basil
Bay
Beans (dry & lima)
Edamame
Eggplant
Lemon verbena
Marjoram
Melons (cantaloupe, watermelons)
Mint
Okra
Onions
Oregano
Peppers
Potatoes
Rosemary
Sage
Malabar & New Zealand spinach
Stevia
Sweet potato
Winter squash (like pumpkins and butternut squash)
Tomatoes
Never miss a plant date again — check out MOTHER EARTH NEWS When to Plant app for iPhones and iPads.
For more garden tips, see my blog atwww.VictoryGardenOnTheGolfCourse.com.
 Garden){kind=link}