What to Plant in a Late Garden in Zone 3

As late spring transitions into early summer, it’s common to discover bare spots in your previously flourishing garden. Whether a certain crop didn’t meet your expectations or unforeseen issues have left you disheartened, there are strategies you can implement to breathe new life into those bare spots and transform your late garden into a beautiful space.

In this blog post, you’ll find valuable tips and tricks for late garden planting, along with a curated list of plants suitable for gardeners in regions with a short growing season and cold climate like where I garden in Zone 3 on the Canadian prairies. Let’s dive in!

A serene garden scene featuring raised wooden planters with lush green plants, a small greenhouse at the center, and a white chair with a blue and white checkered blanket to the right. Trees and greenery form a natural background. A white greenhouse tunnel is on the left.

tips for planting a late garden

1. Visit the greenhouse

Going to your local greenhouse is your first and best step. Around this time of year, they are probably starting to have sales, so it’s a great time to shop! The greenhouse by my house usually has a closing-out sale, so I strategically use that sale to fill in some of my gaps each year.

Inside a small greenhouse, various trays filled with seedlings and plants are arranged on shelves. Gardening tools and supplies, including pots and buckets, are organized below. A framed picture hangs on the back wall, adding a personal touch to the bright, clean space.

2. Choose quick-growing crops

There’s no need to seed start indoors at this point. Everything can be directly sown. If you’re nervous about germination, scatter seeds in a small area. Once the seedlings come up and are a few inches tall, you can move them so they look more orderly. For ideas about what to plant, check out the sixteen quick-growing crops for cold climates below!

Lastly, you can use volunteer plants to your advantage! Once they’re up and a nice size, move them into any noticeable holes in the garden, and they’ll look like they were meant to be there all along!

Small green seedlings sprout from a garden bed covered with dried leaves and twigs. The soil is visible through the scattered organic debris, showing early stages of plant growth.

3. Know that your harvest will be late

Because of the increased daylight, you might be surprised how soon your plants come in compared to other plants. Things do speed up! That said, be prepared for a later harvest when planting late crops. If they haven’t bloomed or matured by September 1st, you will start to notice that they grow significantly slower after that!

What’s the latest you can plant a late garden?

In Zone 3, with my 100-120 day growing season, the latest I will plant out is July 15th. The exception? Spinach and radishes! These crops can be planted as late as August.

best quick-growing crops for a cold climate garden

1. Baby’s Breath

Baby’s breath only blooms for about two weeks, so even if you’re not planning a late garden on purpose, it’s a good crop to have 3-4 successions of. Once you grow your own baby’s breath, you’ll never look at the grocery store varieties the same way again!

Close-up of delicate white flowers with thin green stems in a garden. The background is slightly blurred, showing additional greenery and hints of other plants. The flowers are small, with multiple blossoms on each stem.

2. Bachelor’s Buttons

Bachelor’s buttons are cheerful blue flowers that are wonderful for pollinators.

Close-up of a single vibrant blue cornflower blooming in a green garden, with a slightly blurred background of leaves and stems. The petals appear delicate and slightly ruffled, contrasting with the dark center of the flower.

Want more options for incorporating shades of blue in your garden? Check out this post!

3. Beans

I like having a late crop of beans because it feels like they are ready to harvest just as I’m craving them again. They’d be long gone if I had planted them at a typical time!

Hands holding a blue bowl filled with assorted green, purple, and yellow beans. The person holding the bowl is wearing a dark shirt and jeans. The bright colors of the beans contrast with the blue bowl, creating a vibrant and fresh visual.

4. Beets

I find our family uses beets more for the leaves than the roots, but either way, I always have to grow a small patch.

Five vibrant red beets with long, colorful stems and leaves lie on a gray concrete surface. The earthy roots are freshly harvested, displaying a range of pink and magenta hues along the stems.

5. Calendula

Calendula is often grown for medicinal purposes and is great for making lotions, soaps, and other homemade self-care products!

Two vibrant flowers with yellow petals and red centers blossom side by side amidst green foliage. Sunlight illuminates the flowers, creating a bright and lively scene in the garden.

6. Carrots

Carrots are usually so poor for germination that sometimes you plant a late succession of them just because it’s the third time you’ve sown them.

A variety of multicolored carrots with green tops are arranged side by side on a weathered wooden surface. The carrots range in color from yellow to orange to purple.

7. Forget-Me-Nots

Forget-me-nots prefer cool weather, but I still sow them in at least three successions every year. So, if you end up planting these late, just tell yourself you’re doing another succession!

Close-up of a delicate blue-flowered plant, known as a Forget-Me-Not, standing tall in a lush green garden. The background is softly blurred, highlighting the intricate details and vibrant color of the tiny blooms.

8. Lettuce

Lettuce is one of my favourite vegetables to grow because you usually get volunteers. You can plant lettuce multiple times, and it always grows!

A lush garden bed filled with a variety of leafy green vegetables, including lettuce, kale, and other greens. The plants are densely grown and vibrant, showcasing different shapes and shades of green, indicative of a healthy and thriving vegetable garden.

Related: How to Get Free Lettuce Seeds for Life (with this Seed-Saving Method!)

9. Nigella

Grow nigella for the pods or the delicate flowers; either way, they’re a garden staple.

Close-up of a white flower with thin, spiky leaves growing in a garden bed. The plant is surrounded by other greenery, with a curved wire and a metal fence in the background. The scene is outdoors and suggests a cultivated garden space.

10. Onions

If you plant onions in a late garden, just know that they won’t get very big. Especially if you want to grow for green onions, or don’t mind a smaller bulb, planting late works well!

Close-up of numerous tiny green seedlings sprouting from a bed of soil mixed with small gravel. Each seedling has a thin stem with a black tip at the top, indicating the early stage of growth. The background is a blurred white surface. — These are some onions I seed started, but if you’re planting them late, you’ll want to plant them from sets!

11. Potatoes

Occasionally, you can find free (or very cheap) seed potatoes when you’re planting a late garden because stores just want to get rid of them!

A man stands outdoors holding the handles of a wheelbarrow filled with freshly harvested potatoes and carrots. He is wearing a green t-shirt and blue jeans, and the surrounding area is a grassy, open field with trees in the background.

12. Radishes

Radishes are a vegetable that I wouldn’t plant out in direct sun in July. Plant under a trellis or shade cloth.

A hand holding freshly harvested reddish-pink radishes with roots and dirt, surrounded by green leaves. The background appears to be outdoors, focusing on the radishes in the person's hand.

13. Saponaria

I love saponaria. It gets long, tall stems, it is so graceful, it comes in white or pink, and it is cold tolerant. I always seed at least three successions of it!

A cluster of small, delicate pink flowers with green stems and leaves grows densely in an outdoor garden. The background is a dark soil, creating a contrast that highlights the vibrant colors of the blooming flowers.

14. Spinach

Like radishes, I personally wouldn’t plant spinach out in the open in July. If you do plant it, you should cover it with shade cloth or plant it underneath a trellis of something else (e.g. a pumpkin or cucumber) so it doesn’t bolt immediately.

A close-up of lush green spinach plants with vibrant, healthy leaves growing in a garden bed. In the background, orange marigold flowers add a pop of color among the greenery. The spinach leaves are large and slightly crinkled.

15. Sunflowers

Since these sunflowers will bloom later, I suggest picking autumnal colours like red, orange, or brown.

A person wearing a white knitted sweater holds a bouquet of vibrant yellow sunflowers with green leaves in an outdoor setting. Tall sunflowers and green foliage are visible in the background under an overcast sky.

16. Swiss Chard

Swiss chard is possibly my favourite vegetable. I always like to plant the Bright Lights variety because they look pretty, but the Ford Hook variety is probably more dependable.

Close-up of vibrant Swiss chard with large green leaves and bright red stems growing in a garden. The leafy greens are healthy and surrounded by other plants, suggesting a well-tended vegetable garden.

Anything you’d add? Let me know in the comments!

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