What to plant this week in Cincinnati, OH
With Cincinnati's soil staying cool deep down despite the warm air, this week is all about direct sowing heat-loving crops like okra and cucumbers while harvesting your final early-season potatoes. Be careful with late frosts; while averages suggest frost ends April 21, sudden dips near -5°F can still threaten tender transplants if a cold front moves through.
The next 7 days
Cincinnati, OHGrowing in Cincinnati right now
- Cincinnati's heavy clay soils warm slowly in spring; wait until soil temps hit 60°F before sowing bush beans or squash to avoid rot.
- The city sits on the Ohio River floodplain, so check drainage around raised beds during our typical May rainstorms to prevent root suffocation.
- Use mulch heavily now to suppress weeds and retain moisture as the summer heat builds quickly over the hilly terrain of Hamilton County.
Sow this week
17 crops- Basil
- Borage
- Bush Bean
- Cleome (Spider Flower)
- Cucumber
- French Marigold
- Malabar Spinach
- Nasturtium
- Okra
- Pole Bean
- Scarlet Runner Bean
- Summer Savory
- Thai Basil
- Vinca (Madagascar Periwinkle)
- Yellow Summer Squash
- Zinnia
- Zucchini
Transplant this week
Nothing is due to go out this week.
Harvest soon
58 crops- Anaheim (New Mexico) Pepper
- Banana Pepper
- Basil
- Beefsteak Tomato
- Beet
- Bell Pepper
- Borage
- Brussels Sprouts
- Bush Bean
- Cantaloupe
- Carrot
- Cayenne Pepper
- Cleome (Spider Flower)
- Cosmos
- Cowpea (Black-Eyed Pea)
- Cucumber
- Dahlia
- Edamame
- Eggplant
- Fennel
- Flour Corn
- French Marigold
- Garden Geranium (Zonal)
- Garden Verbena
- Garlic
- Honeydew Melon
- Jalapeño
- Lantana
- Lima Bean
- Malabar Spinach
- Marconi Pepper
- Nasturtium
- Okra
- Ornamental Sweet Potato Vine
- Parsley
- Parsnip
- Petunia
- Poblano Pepper
- Pole Bean
- Potato
- Roma Tomato
- Rutabaga
- Scallion (Bunching Onion)
- Scarlet Runner Bean
- Serrano Pepper
- Shiso (Japanese Basil)
- Snapdragon
- Summer Savory
- Sunflower
- Sweet Corn
- Thai Basil
- Tomatillo
- Tomato
- Vinca (Madagascar Periwinkle)
- Watermelon
- Yellow Summer Squash
- Zinnia
- Zucchini
Seasonal tips
- Succession sow bush beans and pole beans every two weeks for a continuous harvest throughout the summer.
- Mulch around young tomato and pepper plants to retain soil moisture as temperatures rise above 80°F.
- Thin carrot and beet seedlings now to prevent overcrowding and ensure sturdy root development.
Pest & disease watch
- Watch for aphid outbreaks on young Zinnias and Nasturtiums, which love the warm Cincinnati nights right now.
- Early-season flea beetles often chew holes in Brassica crops like Brussels Sprouts before they are fully established.
- Monitor for early blight on ripening Beefsteak tomatoes, especially if humidity spikes after our frequent afternoon showers.
Watering this week
Water deeply in the early morning to encourage deep root growth and reduce evaporation losses during this hot season.
Harvest sweet corn when the kernels are milky and firm, not yet hard or fully browned, for peak sweetness.
Cincinnati gardening questions
3Can I still plant tomatoes this week in Cincinnati?
No, transplants should already be out by now since the average last frost is April 21. However, you can start sowing bush beans and cucumbers directly into the ground today if the soil has warmed up.
Is it safe to plant Malabar Spinach and Okra now?
Your potato crop is listed for harvest soon, but aim to dig them up by early October to avoid damage from frost dates that can drop to -5°F.
Are these heat-loving plants hardy in Cincinnati?
Yes, both are sown directly this week because they thrive after the last frost date of April 21. They will mature quickly before our first expected frost on October 24.
Other cities in zone 6b
12See the full zone 6b guide → · Plan your Cincinnati garden in SproutGuide →