What to plant in May in Canada
22 vegetables, fruits and herbs to sow or plant in May in Canada, for the climate around Southern Ontario, Canada (near Toronto and Georgian Bay).
Climate: Cold continental climate with severe winters down to about -28 °C and frost typically from late October to late April, warm humid summers up to 36 °C, and fairly even rain of roughly 50 to 120 mm a month, so the growing season runs from late May to September.
Vegetables
Garden pea Pisum sativum
Cool spring soil and mild early summer suit peas, and they sow as soon as the ground can be worked in April.
Harvest: 60-70 daysEasyCare guide →
Spinach Spinacia oleracea
It thrives in the cool spring and autumn weather and can be sown again after the summer heat.
Harvest: 40-50 daysEasyIn potsCare guide →
Lettuce Lactuca sativa
Loose-leaf lettuce grows quickly in the cool months and can be sown in succession through summer.
Harvest: 30-60 daysEasyIn potsCare guide →
Carrot Daucus carota
Deep, loose soil warmed by late spring suits carrots, and the autumn cool keeps the roots sweet.
Harvest: 70-80 daysEasyIn potsCare guide →
Beetroot Beta vulgaris
Beetroot tolerates the cool springs and the warm summers here and stores well into autumn.
Harvest: 50-70 daysEasyIn pots
Potato Solanum tuberosum
Seed potatoes planted after the last frost in late May give a reliable harvest in the warm summer.
Harvest: 80-120 daysEasyIn pots
Zucchini Cucurbita pepo
Its vigorous growth in the warm, moist summer produces heavy yields from a few plants.
Harvest: 45-60 daysEasyIn potsCare guide →
Tomato Solanum lycopersicum
Transplants set out after the last frost ripen well in the hot, sunny summer days.
Harvest: 70-85 daysModerateIn potsCare guide →
Onion Allium cepa
Onion sets or transplants planted in April and May mature well before the autumn rains.
Harvest: 100-120 daysModerateCare guide →
Radish Raphanus sativus
Radishes mature in under a month in the cool spring and early autumn, and can be resown all season.
Harvest: 25-30 daysEasyIn pots
Kale Brassica oleracea
Kale tolerates frost and actually sweetens in the cold autumn, extending the harvest into November.
Harvest: 55-65 daysEasyIn potsCare guide →
Fruits
Saskatoon berry Amelanchier alnifolia
A hardy native shrub that survives the -28 °C winters and produces sweet berries with little care.
Harvest: 2-3 yearsEasy
Highbush blueberry Vaccinium corymbosum
Cold-hardy cultivars fruit well in the local summer, provided the soil is kept acidic.
Harvest: 2-3 yearsModerateIn potsCare guide →
Raspberry Rubus idaeus
Canes are fully hardy to -30 °C and the moist summer gives heavy crops of summer berries.
Harvest: 1-2 yearsEasyCare guide →
Gooseberry Ribes uva-crispa
Gooseberry bushes are very cold tolerant and fruit reliably in the cool early summer.
Harvest: 2-3 yearsEasyIn pots
Apple Malus domestica
Apple trees need cold winters to rest and this climate gives the chill hours and summer heat they need.
Harvest: 3-5 yearsModerateCare guide →
Sour cherry Prunus cerasus
Hardy sour cherry varieties handle the cold winters and ripen their fruit in the warm July.
Harvest: 3-4 yearsModerate
Haskap Lonicera caerulea
Haskap is one of the hardiest fruiting shrubs and is among the first to fruit in early summer.
Harvest: 2-3 yearsEasyIn pots
Herbs
Parsley Petroselinum crispum
Parsley tolerates cool springs and gives leaves through the summer in a sunny spot.
Harvest: 70-90 daysEasyIn potsCare guide →
Chives Allium schoenoprasum
A hardy perennial that returns every spring after the winter cold.
Harvest: 60-75 daysEasyIn potsCare guide →
Dill Anethum graveolens
Dill grows quickly in the warm summer and self-sows freely in the local season.
Harvest: 40-60 daysEasyIn pots
Mint Mentha spicata
Spearmint is fully hardy and vigorous, and it thrives in the moist summers here, best kept in a pot.
Harvest: 60-90 daysEasyIn potsCare guide →