South Coastal BC Vegetable Gardening Guide

Vancouver, Victoria and the Fraser Valley have the longest frost-free season in Canada: more than 200 days at every station below. The limits here are cool summers and very wet winters, not a short season.

Frost dates, temperatures and precipitation are Environment and Climate Change Canada climate normals (1981–2010). Growing advice is checked against provincial agriculture departments and Canadian universities.

Frost dates and climate

Average dates of the last spring frost and first fall frost, and the frost-free period between them, at major stations in the region. The growing season is that frost-free period; choose varieties that mature within it.

What grows well here, and what struggles

With more than 200 frost-free days, most crops’ days to maturity fit comfortably inside the season. Heat-loving crops are the challenge: July average highs are only about 22–24°C, so tomatoes and peppers are still started indoors for a head start and planted out only once the danger of frost has passed. Kale, cabbage and broccoli do well in cool autumn weather and stand light frosts.

Month by month

What our month guides recommend for South coastal BC. Each month links to the full guide.

• January: start indoors now?: Yes: leeks, onions, artichokes, asparagus , under bright light, other january work: Plan; order seed
• February: start indoors: Leeks, onions, pac choi, parsley, chives, Florence fennel, artichokes, asparagus, outdoors: Broad beans; peas about three weeks later
• March: start indoors: Tomatoes (ideally March 15), peppers, onions, leeks, lettuce , brassicas, celery, outdoors: Peas, broad beans, spinach, radishes, arugula , kale, pac choi
• April: indoors: Tomatoes before April 15, peppers before April 10, eggplant, basil; melons late in April, outdoors: Peas, carrots, lettuce, spinach, radishes, brassicas, onions, parsnips; beets and parsley after the 15th
• May: outdoors: Beans and basil after the 15th; lettuce , kale, broccoli, pac choi, parsley, indoors or waiting: Cucumbers , squash and pumpkins indoors early in May
• June: sow outdoors: Beans, squash, zucchini, cucumbers, corn, beets , carrots, lettuce; leeks and celeriac for winter, also: Start Brussels sprouts, cauliflower and purple sprouting broccoli indoors
• July: sow or plant now: Kale, collards, spinach, chard, turnips, rutabagas, beets , parsley; carrots until about July 10, also: Start broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower and overwintering onions indoors
• August: sow or plant now: Spinach, lettuce, arugula, kale, collards, pac choi, beets , carrots, turnips, chard; peas before the 15th; radishes and corn salad after, notes: First frost not usually until November 2 in the Lower Mainland
• September: sow or plant now: Corn salad and endive to mid-September; mizuna and komatsuna to early September; spinach under cloches, also: Cover winter crops for a longer harvest

Crop guides to start with

Guides for crops that appear in this region’s month-by-month plantings:

• Peas
• Lettuce
• Spinach
• Kale
• Broccoli
• Cabbage
• Carrots
• Beets
• Parsnips
• Leeks
• Garlic
• Swiss chard
• Radishes
• Tomatoes
• Green beans

Weather and soil notes

Rain is concentrated in winter: Vancouver averages about 189 mm in November against 36 mm in July (ECCC normals). Plan for dry summers, when crops need regular water, and wet winters, when beds need to drain. Snow is light at these stations (under 60 cm a year).

Back to regional gardening in Canada, or see the Canada vegetable planting calendar.

References

• Environment and Climate Change Canada: Canadian Climate Normals 1981–2010 (frost dates, temperature, precipitation)
• Manitoba Agriculture: Agricultural climate of Manitoba
• University of Saskatchewan, Gardening at USask: Determining planting dates
• Dalhousie University Faculty of Agriculture, Extended Learning: Sowing seed (Garden Box series)
• Dalhousie University Faculty of Agriculture, Extended Learning: Vegetable gardening in the fall (Garden Box series)
• University of Saskatchewan, Gardening at USask: Growing your own transplants
• Manitoba Northern Healthy Foods Initiative: Starting seeds indoors
• Dalhousie University Faculty of Agriculture, Extended Learning: Managing the garden: season extension and frost protection
• Manitoba Indigenous and Northern Relations: A community gardener’s guidebook
• Dalhousie University Faculty of Agriculture, Extended Learning: Vegetable gardening in the fall (Garden Box series)
• Iowa State University Extension: What’s the difference between cool and warm season veggies?
• University of Illinois Extension: Planting a fall vegetable garden
• Alabama Cooperative Extension System: Basics of fall vegetable gardening

Figures in the tables are the official averages named above. Every other statement is supported by at least three of these sources. The month-by-month notes summarise our own month guides, each of which lists its sources. All sources were checked on 24 October 2026.

Last reviewed: 24 October 2026