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Garden Planning, Succession & Crop RotationMarket Garden Calendar
A market garden calendar is a sales plan as much as a growing plan. Every sowing date should trace back to a week when you expect to have a customer waiting for the crop.
Key points
- Build the calendar backward from market weeks and add a cushion for slow growth.
- Write each succession planting as its own line with a bed and a harvest window.
- Mark labor and cash peaks early and arrange help before they arrive.
- Check state and county rules on selling, labeling and food safety before your first sale.
- Keep sales and yield records and rebuild the plan each fall.
What does a market garden calendar need to show?
It should show three things side by side: when each crop is sown or transplanted, when it is expected to be ready, and where it will be sold. Add the labor you expect each week, because harvest, washing and market days compete for the same hours.
Start from your markets and customers, not from the seed catalog. Ask which crops sold out last year, which were left over and which weeks were thin. Those answers shape the calendar more than any planting chart.
Keep one master sheet for the season and a weekly view for the tasks in front of you. The master sheet shows the big picture, and the weekly view keeps harvest, washing and market prep from colliding.
How do you work backward from the market week?
Pick the week you want a crop to be ready, then subtract the days to maturity listed for the variety and add a cushion for slow weather. That gives you a target sowing or transplant week. Quick crops need short cushions and slow crops need longer ones, and spring and fall growth rates differ, so be generous in fall when days shorten.
Tie the result to your local frost dates from the National Weather Service or your county extension office. A plant hardiness zone shows winter minimum temperature only and cannot set planting dates.
Test the math on a small crop first. If a crop you planned to harvest in a given week arrives a week early or late, note the reason, whether weather, variety or soil, and adjust the cushion for next season.
How should succession planting fit the plan?
Quick, perishable crops such as salad greens, radishes and beans sell best when supply is steady, so stagger their sowings. Slower crops with a long harvest, such as tomatoes, need fewer plantings but more care over a longer period.
Write each planting as its own line on the calendar, with a bed number, a sow date, a transplant date if any and an expected first harvest. Treat the plan as a draft and update it every week with real results.
- One line per planting, not one per crop
- Bed number and expected harvest window
- A reserve slot for replanting after weather losses
When do labor and cash flow peak?
Most market gardens have a busy spring, a heavy midsummer harvest and a quieter fall. Mark these peaks on the calendar so you can arrange help, equipment and supplies before they arrive, instead of during them.
Cash is usually tightest in early spring, when seed, supplies and fees go out before sales begin. A simple month-by-month cash plan shows when you will need a buffer. The USDA Farm Service Agency and your extension office can explain programs and records that may apply to a small operation.
What food safety and sales rules apply?
Rules on selling produce, labeling, weights, permits, taxes and food safety vary by state and county, and sometimes by market. Ask your state department of agriculture and your market manager what applies before your first sale.
The USDA Agricultural Marketing Service and your extension service offer information on produce safety and on selling through different channels. Build wash, cool and handling steps into the weekly calendar rather than treating them as extras.
How do you protect crops and soil through the year?
Plan crop rotation by plant family so that pests and diseases do not build up in a bed. Add cover crops or compost in empty beds, and test soil on a regular schedule. Follow local recommendations, since nutrient management rules vary by state.
For pests and diseases, scout on a regular schedule and begin with prevention. If you consider a pesticide, ask extension for current recommendations, follow the label, observe pre-harvest intervals and protect pollinators. Applicator licensing varies by state.
Cover crops, mulch and compost should have places on the calendar as well, so that beds are never left bare without a plan.
What records should you keep for next year?
Track what you planted, when, how much you harvested and how much you sold, along with prices and unsold waste. Add notes on weather, pests and problems. After a season, these records show which crops earn their space.
Review the calendar each fall with a clear question: which crops made money, which cost more than they returned, and which weeks had too much or too little? Then rebuild the next calendar from those answers.
Sources and further reading
Last reviewed: November 2026. Educational information, ranges only. Confirm timing with your county extension office.