Vegetable planting calendar for Corpus Christi and the Coastal Bend

Spring and fall planting times for common vegetables in Nueces, Aransas and San Patricio counties, drawn from Texas A&M AgriLife Extension and its local Master Gardener programs.

Where these dates come from

This page combines two AgriLife sources:

Spring: the month-by-month checklist in In Our Coastal Gardens, published by the Aransas/San Patricio Master Gardeners, a Texas A&M AgriLife Extension program. It is written for this part of the coast and gives months, not exact dates.
Fall: the Region V column of AgriLife's Fall Vegetable Gardening Guide (EHT-056), which lists average fall planting dates. The guide links its warmest zone, Zone V, to USDA zone 9B. It does not name cities, but Corpus Christi was in zone 9b on the previous USDA map and is in 10a on the 2023 map, so Region V is the closest match. Treat these dates as approximate.

Planting table

Crop	Spring (Coastal Bend checklist)	Fall (EHT-056, Region V average date)
Tomato	Transplant in February, protected from cold; warm-season planting ends mid-April	Aug 1 (last optimum date Sep 1)
Pepper	Transplant in February; also on the May list	Aug 1 (last optimum date Sep 1)
Eggplant	Transplant in February; also on the May list	Aug 1 (last optimum date Sep 1)
Snap beans, bush and pole	Sow February through March	Oct 1 (bush)
Lima / butter beans	Sow February through March	Sep 15 (bush)
Sweet corn	Sow in March	Sep 20
Cucumber	Sow in March	Oct 1
Summer squash	Sow in March; also on the May list	Oct 10
Winter squash	Not listed	Sep 10
Pumpkin	May	Sep 1
Okra	May	Not listed
Southern peas	May	Sep 1
Sweet potato	May	Not listed
Cantaloupe, watermelon	May	Not listed
Broccoli	Sow in January	Nov 1 (last optimum date Nov 20)
Cabbage	Sow in January	Nov 1 (last optimum date Nov 20)
Cauliflower	Set out in January	Nov 1 (last optimum date Nov 20)
Kohlrabi	Sow in January	Nov 1
Lettuce	Sow or set out in January	Dec 1 (leaf)
Spinach, Swiss chard	Set out in January	Dec 15
Beets, radishes, turnips	Plant in January	Dec 15
Kale / collards	Kale in January	Dec 15 (collards)
Mustard	January	Dec 15
Carrots	Not listed	Dec 15
Parsley	January	Dec 1
Onion	Onion sets in January	Dec 15 (seed)
Garlic	Not listed	December (cloves)
Irish potato	January	Not recommended

"Last optimum date" comes from EHT-056's second table, the last good date for seeding or transplanting in Region V. "Not listed" means the source gives no time for that crop in that season.

Working out your own dates

AgriLife's Texas Home Vegetable Gardening Guide (EHT-077) times planting by your area's average frost dates rather than by calendar date. For example, it puts tomatoes 1 to 8 weeks after the spring frost-free date and 12 to 14 weeks before the first fall freeze, and broccoli 4 to 6 weeks before the spring frost-free date and 10 to 16 weeks before the first freeze. Use these ranges if you know your local frost dates. Near the coast, freezes are uncommon and may not come every winter, so the calendar dates above are usually the more practical guide.

Tips for the fall start

Fall transplants go in during the hottest weeks of the year. EHT-056 suggests full sun with shade after 3 p.m. for homegrown transplants, and warns that young plants in small containers may need water every day.
Too much water is as harmful as too little. If the soil holds together in a ball, it still has enough water.
An inch or two of water once a week is usually enough for most Texas vegetable gardens, though containers and sandy soils need more frequent watering.
Spunbonded row cover gives fall plants some shade from hot sun.

To buy transplants or see what local growers are harvesting, see farmers markets in the Coastal Bend.

Sources