When to Plant Artichokes in Washington
Washington spans USDA hardiness 6a to 9b (zones 6a to 9b on this page). Plant artichokes by your local frost date, not the calendar — pick your zone below for exact start-indoors, transplant, and harvest dates.
Jump to: Zone 6a · Zone 6b · Zone 7a · Zone 7b · Zone 8a · Zone 8b · Zone 9a · Zone 9b
Artichokes planting calendar for Washington, Zone 6a
Average last spring frost
April 25
Average first fall frost
October 10
Start seeds indoors
Feb 28
Transplant outdoors
May 9
Projected first harvest
Oct 6
Most artichokes mature in about 120 to 150 days depending on the variety. Full zone 6 guide (both 6a and 6b) →
Artichokes planting calendar for Washington, Zone 6b
Average last spring frost
April 20
Average first fall frost
October 15
Start seeds indoors
Feb 23
Transplant outdoors
May 4
Projected first harvest
Oct 1
Most artichokes mature in about 120 to 150 days depending on the variety. Full zone 6 guide (both 6a and 6b) →
Artichokes planting calendar for Washington, Zone 7a
Average last spring frost
April 15
Average first fall frost
October 20
Start seeds indoors
Feb 18
Transplant outdoors
Apr 29
Projected first harvest
Sep 26
Most artichokes mature in about 120 to 150 days depending on the variety. Full zone 7 guide (both 7a and 7b) →
Artichokes planting calendar for Washington, Zone 7b
Average last spring frost
April 10
Average first fall frost
October 30
Start seeds indoors
Feb 13
Transplant outdoors
Apr 24
Projected first harvest
Sep 21
Most artichokes mature in about 120 to 150 days depending on the variety. Full zone 7 guide (both 7a and 7b) →
Artichokes planting calendar for Washington, Zone 8a
Average last spring frost
April 1
Average first fall frost
November 10
Start seeds indoors
Aug 4
Transplant outdoors
Oct 6
Projected first harvest
Mar 5
Artichokes needs about 120 to 150 days depending on the variety to mature — longer than Zone 8a typically stays frost-free, so it likely won't reliably ripen there outdoors without a head start indoors or season extension. Full zone 8 guide (both 8a and 8b) →
Artichokes planting calendar for Washington, Zone 8b
Average last spring frost
March 20
Average first fall frost
November 20
Start seeds indoors
Aug 14
Transplant outdoors
Oct 16
Projected first harvest
Mar 15
Artichokes needs about 120 to 150 days depending on the variety to mature — longer than Zone 8b typically stays frost-free, so it likely won't reliably ripen there outdoors without a head start indoors or season extension. Full zone 8 guide (both 8a and 8b) →
Artichokes planting calendar for Washington, Zone 9a
Average last spring frost
March 1
Average first fall frost
December 1
Start seeds indoors
Aug 25
Transplant outdoors
Oct 27
Projected first harvest
Mar 26
Artichokes needs about 120 to 150 days depending on the variety to mature — longer than Zone 9a typically stays frost-free, so it likely won't reliably ripen there outdoors without a head start indoors or season extension. Full zone 9 guide (both 9a and 9b) →
Artichokes planting calendar for Washington, Zone 9b
Average last spring frost
February 15
Average first fall frost
December 15
Start seeds indoors
Sep 8
Transplant outdoors
Nov 10
Projected first harvest
Apr 9
Artichokes needs about 120 to 150 days depending on the variety to mature — longer than Zone 9b typically stays frost-free, so it likely won't reliably ripen there outdoors without a head start indoors or season extension. Full zone 9 guide (both 9a and 9b) →
Not sure which half-zone you're in? Set your ZIP in HomeSown for dates tuned to your exact location.
Varieties to grow
2 varieties of artichokes in the HomeSown library. Tap any for its full grow guide.
Common problems with artichokes
What to watch for, with identification and treatment for each
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