Grow 2 Harvests Per Year: 15 Best Vegetables for Georgia’s Zone 7-9 Climate
Grow 2 full harvests in Georgia with the right 15 vegetables, NWS frost dates by city, and proven heat strategies for zones 6-9.
Georgia gardeners hold an advantage most of the country envies. From the Blue Ridge foothills in the north to the Coastal Plain in the south, the state spans USDA hardiness zones 6 through 9 — a range that makes two full harvests per year possible for most home gardeners. In Atlanta (Zone 7b), the average last frost falls around April 10, and the first fall frost doesn’t arrive until November 13, giving you more than 210 frost-free days. In Columbus and Savannah, that window stretches past 240 days.
The challenge isn’t season length. It’s matching the right vegetables to the right windows — and knowing how to keep your garden productive through Georgia’s punishing July and August heat, when daytime temperatures regularly top 95°F and soil temperatures can climb above 85°F. This guide covers the 15 best vegetables for Georgia gardens, both planting windows, UGA-recommended cultivars, and heat strategies grounded in university extension research.
Georgia’s Growing Zones and Frost Windows
Georgia spans a greater climate range than its geography suggests. The 2023 USDA hardiness zone update placed most of the Piedmont — Atlanta, Athens, Augusta — in Zone 7b–8a, while the Coastal Plain from Columbus south sits in Zone 8b–9a, and the mountain counties around Blairsville and Clayton hold at Zone 6–7a. These zones translate directly into planting windows.
| Region | USDA Zone | Last Spring Frost | First Fall Frost | Frost-Free Days |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Blue Ridge Mountains (Blairsville area) | 6b–7a | ~May 21 | ~Sept 29 | ~131 |
| Piedmont / Atlanta | 7b–8a | ~April 10 | ~Nov 13 | ~217 |
| Central Georgia / Columbus–Macon | 8a | ~March 20 | ~Nov 17 | ~242 |
| Coastal Plain / Savannah | 8b–9a | ~March 15 | ~Late Nov | 250+ |
Frost data sourced from National Weather Service Atlanta verified averages: Athens first freeze averages November 7, Atlanta November 13, Columbus November 17, and Macon November 11. Mountain and coastal averages from UFSeeds Georgia planting calendar. Year-to-year variation is significant — always use these as planning baselines, not guarantees.
The Double-Season Strategy: Planning Both Harvest Windows
Most Georgia gardeners plant in spring and treat summer as survival mode. The better approach is to plan two distinct growing periods from the start. According to the UGA Vegetable Garden Calendar, many warm-season crops — tomatoes, cucumbers, squash, and snap beans — can be re-planted for fall harvest if transplanted by July 20 or direct-sown by August 15–31.
The UGA fall planting formula: take your first frost date, subtract the vegetable’s days to maturity, then subtract 18 more days as a buffer for shorter days and cooling-season growth. For snap beans in Atlanta: 55-day maturity + 18-day buffer = 73 days. Count back 73 days from November 13 = plant by August 31 at the latest. This calculation applies to every vegetable in the planting calendar below.
Mountain gardeners in Zone 6–7a effectively have one season. Everyone in the Piedmont and south can realistically run two. For a broader regional planting strategy, see our regional gardening growing guide covering zone-by-zone approaches across the US.
Spring and Summer Vegetables
1. Tomatoes
Tomatoes are Georgia’s most popular homegrown vegetable, and the long warm season suits them well — one planting in spring and a second transplant in mid-July for a fall crop. Set spring transplants out in middle Georgia between late March and early May once overnight temperatures stay consistently above 50°F.
Above 86°F, tomato pollen becomes non-viable, causing blossom drop even on otherwise healthy plants. This is why a July 15–20 transplant produces better fall fruit than struggling spring plants: that crop flowers in September’s cooler air and produces heavily through October and November, well ahead of the first frost.
UGA-recommended varieties (from C1326, updated 2025): Mountain Fresh and Mountain Pride — both carry nematode resistance, important in Georgia’s soils — and BHN 640, a heat-tolerant type that performs well in Zones 8–9. For cherry tomatoes, Juliet and Sweet 100 hold up reliably through Georgia’s heat.
2. Okra
No vegetable belongs to Georgia more completely than okra. It thrives when daytime temperatures push into the 90s, keeps producing through August heat that stalls other crops, and is genuinely indifferent to humidity. Plant direct seed outdoors from mid-April through June once soil temperatures reach 65°F — cold soil causes rot rather than germination, a mistake that catches many first-time okra growers.
Harvest Clemson Spineless pods at 3–4 inches; if you miss a week and pods go woody, remove every oversized one immediately. Okra responds to aggressive picking by accelerating production — one missed week can slow a plant for two. I’ve found that daily harvesting in peak summer keeps plants producing well past the point where other crops would be done.
UGA-recommended varieties: Clemson Spineless (the Georgia standard — consistent, productive, straight pods suitable for fresh and pickled use) and Emerald Green (more tender pods, performs well in intensive beds).
3. Southern Peas (Cowpeas)
Crowder peas, black-eyed peas, cream peas, and zipper peas all belong to Vigna unguiculata — and all of them evolved in conditions that resemble Georgia’s deep summer. Unlike snap beans, which abort pods above 85°F, Southern peas set reliably at 90°F+ and tolerate the drought spells that stall other crops. They also fix their own nitrogen, which means they’re low-maintenance in the poor sandy soils common in Georgia’s Coastal Plain.
Plant from mid-April through July in middle Georgia. Days to maturity: 60–75 days depending on variety. If tomatoes are heat-stalling in July, Southern peas fill the harvest gap better than any other warm-season option.
UGA-recommended variety: Purple Hull FVR, which carries resistance to fusarium wilt and root-knot nematodes — both endemic in Georgia’s sandy southern soils.
4. Sweet Potatoes
Georgia Jet — a variety named for this state — was developed with Southeastern growing conditions in mind. Sweet potatoes need 90–120 days of sustained warmth and are started from slips (rooted cuttings), not seeds. Plant slips in Georgia from mid-April through May once soil temperature reaches 65°F. They’ll grow through summer heat without complaint and signal harvest readiness by cracking the soil surface as roots push upward.
Beauregard is the commercial standard in Georgia — orange flesh, high yield, cures well for long storage. Both Beauregard and Georgia Jet are recommended by UGA Cooperative Extension for home gardens. Raised beds improve drainage and prevent the root rots sweet potatoes develop in heavy clay soils common across Georgia’s Piedmont.
Spacing: 12–18 inches in rows 3–4 feet apart. Allow 90–120 days from planting to harvest depending on variety.
5. Cucumbers
Cucumbers work in both Georgia planting windows, making them one of the most productive double-season choices. Spring planting: direct sow in late March to mid-April (Piedmont) once soil reaches 60°F. Fall planting: direct sow by August 15–31 using downy mildew-resistant varieties — Georgia’s late-summer humidity makes standard varieties collapse quickly in September.
The UGA Vegetable Garden Calendar specifies that fall cucumbers should use downy mildew-resistant varieties and be in the ground by August 31 for middle Georgia. For spring, Bush Pickle and Straight Eight perform reliably; for fall, look for varieties labeled DM-resistant on the seed packet.
6. Summer Squash
Yellow squash and zucchini follow the same double-season pattern as cucumbers. Spring plants often peter out in midsummer heat and squash vine borer pressure, making a fresh August planting a more productive strategy than trying to keep struggling spring plants alive. Fall squash in Georgia frequently outperforms spring — cooler September and October temperatures extend the harvest window, and vine borer pressure drops significantly after mid-August.
Direct sow in April for spring; direct sow by August 31 for fall in middle Georgia. Plant 3 seeds per hill, thin to the strongest 1–2 plants once established. Days to first harvest: 45–55 days depending on variety.
7. Peppers
Peppers tolerate Georgia’s heat better than tomatoes — they may briefly slow fruit set above 95°F but don’t drop flowers the way tomatoes do. One spring planting continues producing from June through November with consistent irrigation. The long Georgia season is particularly favorable: a mid-April transplant can produce for 6–7 months in Zone 8.
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→ View My Garden CalendarThin-walled pepper types — banana peppers, cayennes, jalapeños — hold up better in Zone 8b–9a extreme heat than thick-walled bells. In middle Georgia and north, standard bell varieties like California Wonder perform well. In south Georgia’s Zone 9, heat-tolerant bell types like Aristotle maintain better production through peak summer.
8. Eggplant
Eggplant needs the longest warm season of any common vegetable and is barely viable below 50°F, making Georgia’s Zone 7–9 near-ideal. Set transplants out in late April to mid-May once soil warms past 60°F. Japanese varieties — Ichiban, Orient Express — produce more reliably in Georgia’s heat than large Italian types, with thinner skins and a more prolific fruiting habit through Georgia’s long summer. Days to harvest from transplant: 65–80 days.
9. Watermelon
Georgia is one of the country’s top watermelon-producing states, and the same conditions that drive commercial yields — warm sandy soil, long hot summers, abundant sunshine — make it a natural fit for home gardens. Direct sow in late April through May once soil reaches 70°F. Standard varieties need 80–90 days, so a May 1 planting in Atlanta has plenty of time before the November frost. Compact icebox varieties (Sugar Baby, Minilee) work in raised beds; full-size varieties like Crimson Sweet need 6 feet of run per plant and repay the space with 20–25-pound fruit.
Cool-Season Vegetables for Georgia
10. Collard Greens
Collards are Georgia’s most iconic vegetable — and among the most forgiving. They’re heat-tolerant enough to continue producing through summer with reduced output, and cold-hardy to around 20°F, giving them a usable season longer than any other brassica in the state. Frost actually improves them: cold temperatures convert starches to sugars, noticeably sweetening the leaves. A September transplant in Zones 8–9 can produce through January and into February.
Plant spring transplants in February–March; fall transplants in August–September. Harvest outer leaves first, working inward — this keeps plants productive for many weeks rather than ending the harvest in one cutting.
11. Green Beans (Snap Beans)
Snap beans are the most reliable double-season crop in Georgia gardens. Spring: direct sow from mid-March through April once soil reaches 60°F, succession-planting every 2–3 weeks to spread harvest rather than getting one large flush. Fall: sow by August 15 in middle Georgia — the UGA Garden Calendar marks this as a firm deadline, with later plantings frequently failing to mature before frost.
For the fall window, bush types like Provider (55 days) are the right call — they mature quickly and fit the compressed timeline. For spring, where season length isn’t a constraint, pole beans like Blue Lake Pole produce longer and more prolifically from a single planting.
12. Broccoli
Broccoli is the fall crown jewel of the Georgia garden — and the most common mistake is trying to grow it in spring. Spring broccoli in Georgia bolts within days of temperatures climbing above 80°F, which happens fast in April and May. Fall-planted broccoli matures in October’s cooling air, produces tighter, better-flavored heads, and holds in the garden through November and December in Zones 8–9.
Transplant broccoli seedlings in late August through September in middle Georgia. Start seeds indoors 6–8 weeks before that transplant date, or purchase transplants from a local nursery. Spacing: 18 inches in rows 24 inches apart. University of Delaware extension research identified Eastern Crown broccoli as a heat-tolerant variety for gardeners pushing the edges of spring planting windows.
13. Carrots
Carrots are a patient fall crop that Georgia’s mild winters suit well. Direct sow in August for mountain Georgia through mid-September for the coastal zone, for a fall and early-winter harvest. The critical challenge is germination: the top inch of soil must stay consistently moist for 10–14 days after sowing. In warm August soil that dries fast, most carrot failures start here. Cover the sown bed with burlap or a flat board until sprouts emerge — this single step solves the problem most beginners encounter.
Raised beds with deep, loose, amended soil are worth the effort. Nantes and Danvers types are most reliable in Georgia conditions. Imperator types (the long grocery-store carrot) require very deep, perfect soil and rarely reward home gardeners in Georgia’s heavy clay.
14. Lettuce
Lettuce in Georgia occupies two narrow windows: late winter through early spring (February–April) and fall (September–October). Between those windows, temperatures above 85°F push plants to bolt and turn bitter within days. Heat-tolerant varieties like Jericho (romaine) extend the useful season by 2–3 extra weeks, but no variety escapes Georgia’s summer indefinitely.
Grow spring lettuce in containers that can be moved to afternoon shade as temperatures climb. See our container vegetable garden guide for setup details. Fall lettuce planted in late September produces reliably through November in the Piedmont and well into December in Zones 8b–9.
15. Sweet Corn
Sweet corn rewards the space it demands in Georgia. Plant from mid-March through April in the Piedmont once soil reaches 60°F; mountain gardeners (Zone 6–7a) should wait until late April. Succession plant every 2–3 weeks through May to spread harvest over 6–8 weeks rather than dealing with every ear ripening simultaneously.
Plant in blocks of at least 4 rows rather than long single rows — corn is wind-pollinated, and linear plantings produce poorly filled ears. Days to maturity: 70–90 days depending on variety. Georgia’s warm soils accelerate sugar conversion in developing ears, so harvest and eat the same day for peak flavor. Silver Queen (92 days) and Peaches and Cream (83 days) both perform well across Georgia’s Zones 7–8.
Beating Georgia’s Summer Heat: Science and Strategy
Between late June and early September, Piedmont Georgia regularly reaches 90–95°F with soil temperatures pushing above 85°F. The effect on vegetables is specific and biochemical. When air temperature climbs above 86°F, plants close their stomata — the microscopic leaf pores through which they transpire water. This protects against dehydration but eliminates evaporative cooling. Leaf temperatures rise above air temperature, and if sustained, enzymes essential to pollination begin to fail. Tomato pollen becomes non-viable. Bean pods abort. Lettuce triggers bolting. These are predictable physiological responses with predictable interventions.
30% shade cloth: University of Delaware Cooperative Extension research confirmed that 30% density black shade cloth, installed over hoops so it doesn’t contact plants, significantly reduces soil and leaf temperatures. Black cloth performed as well as colored options at a fraction of the cost. Do not use 50%+ density for most vegetables — it restricts airflow.
4 inches of mulch: The UGA Vegetable Gardening guide recommends 2–4 inches of mulch after settling. Mulch reduces soil temperature, preserves moisture for plant evaporative cooling, and cuts irrigation needs by 30–50% in Georgia’s sandy soils. Straw, wood chips, and pine straw all work effectively.
Fill the heat gap with heat-lovers: Okra, Southern peas, sweet potatoes, peppers, and eggplant genuinely perform well above 90°F rather than just surviving. Rather than fighting to keep tomatoes and cucumbers alive through July, filling that gap with these crops and replanting tomatoes, cucumbers, and squash fresh in August is the most practical Georgia-specific strategy. Our guide to the best summer vegetables covers additional heat-season options in detail.
Georgia Vegetable Planting Calendar at a Glance
| Vegetable | Spring Plant (Middle GA) | Fall Plant (Middle GA) | Season Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tomatoes | Late March–May | By July 20 (transplants) | Warm — dual |
| Okra | Mid-April–June | N/A | Warm only |
| Southern Peas | Mid-April–July | Through July | Warm — dual |
| Sweet Potatoes | Mid-April–May | N/A (90–120 days needed) | Warm only |
| Cucumbers | Late March–April | By Aug 31 (DM-resistant) | Warm — dual |
| Summer Squash | April | By Aug 31 | Warm — dual |
| Peppers | Mid-April | N/A | Warm only |
| Eggplant | Late April–May | N/A | Warm only |
| Watermelon | Late April–May | N/A | Warm only |
| Collard Greens | Feb–March | Aug–Sept | Cool — dual |
| Green Beans | Mid-March–April | By Aug 15 | Warm — dual |
| Broccoli | Not recommended | Late Aug–Sept (transplants) | Cool — fall only |
| Carrots | Feb–March | Aug–mid-Sept | Cool — dual |
| Lettuce | Feb–April | Sept–Oct | Cool — dual |
| Sweet Corn | Mid-March–May | N/A | Warm only |
South Georgia (Zones 8b–9) can push spring dates 2–3 weeks earlier and extend fall dates 2 weeks later than middle Georgia. North Georgia mountain gardeners (Zone 6–7a) should delay spring planting by 2–4 weeks and start fall planting 2 weeks earlier. For beginners choosing their first two or three crops, see our guide to the 10 easiest vegetables for beginner gardeners.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the easiest vegetable to grow in Georgia?
Okra. It thrives in Georgia’s heat, requires minimal care once established, and produces heavily from late spring through first frost. For beginners, it is more forgiving than tomatoes and more productive than most cool-season crops during the summer months.
Can you grow vegetables year-round in Georgia?
In Zones 8b–9 (south Georgia and the Savannah area), yes — cool-season crops like collards, kale, carrots, and lettuce can be grown continuously through winter with minimal protection. In the Piedmont (Zones 7b–8a), there is typically a 4–6 week pause in December and January when temperatures drop too low for most vegetables without row covers or cold frames.
When is the last frost in Georgia?
It varies significantly by zone. Atlanta averages April 10, Savannah averages March 30, and Blairsville in the North Georgia mountains averages May 21. Check your specific location using National Weather Service data or your county cooperative extension office rather than relying on state-wide averages.
Sources
- Vegetable Gardening in Georgia — UGA Cooperative Extension (C963)
- Vegetable Garden Calendar — UGA Cooperative Extension (C943)
- Best Garden Vegetable Varieties for Georgia — UGA CAES (C1326, Bob Westerfield, 2025)
- Average First Freeze Dates for North and Central Georgia — National Weather Service Atlanta
- Protecting Your Garden Vegetables from Heat Stress — University of Delaware Cooperative Extension
