Month-by-Month Planting Guide

When it comes to gardening, timing is everything. Planting at the right time is essential to producing a strong, healthy crop. Some vegetables are cold tolerant and may be planted earlier in the season, while others are warm weather crops that may be stunted if planted too early.

April
April is still too chilly to plant most crops, because danger of frost has not past yet. However, April is the perfect time to prepare for planting. Prepare the soil in your garden beds by turning in lots of compost or garden refuse; start seeds for warm weather crops indoors; place black plastic over your garden beds to warm the soil more quickly, enabling earlier planting; use cold frames for cool season crops, such as lettuce or cabbage transplants to harden them off by exposing them to sunlight and cold before placing them in the garden.

May
May might still have some danger of frost, but the worst will have past, and you can start planting cool season crops such as asparagus, beets, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cabbage, lettuce, onions, peas, radishes, spinach, and turnips. If it is still too cold, with temperatures below 40 degrees Fahrenheit, add a row cover to trap warmth and moisture.

June
In June, things should be warming up nicely, and you should be ready to plant or transplant the remainder of your garden. Remove the row covers from your cool season crops that were planted earlier. Transplant warm-season crops from cold frames or indoors, into the garden, or plant seeds for these crops, since the soil should be warm enough for successful germination. Warm season crops include cantaloupe, carrots, corn, cucumbers, eggplant, lima beans, okra, parsnips, peanuts, peppers, potatoes, pumpkins, snap beans, summer squash, sweet potatoes, Swiss chard, tomatoes, watermelons, and winter squash.

July
You might think that by July, all the planting would be done, but in fact, July is the perfect time to make successive plantings to extend the growing season. You do this with short season crops that don't take long to mature. In this way, you utilize the space left by crops that have already been harvested, and increase your yields. Short season crops include beets, carrots, collards, chicory, endive, kohlrabi, mustard greens, radishes, shallots, spinach, and Swiss chard.

Source: http://www.ehow.com/facts_7192766_month_by_month-planting-guide.html