British Columbia boasts diverse landscapes, a mild climate, and fertile soil, making it a suitable location for farming. The land supports a wide variety of crops and vegetables based on the time of year and weather conditions. Fruits and vegetables can be grown all year round in British Columbia and stored during the harsh winter cold, ensuring a steady supply of local fruits and vegetables.
The quick guide below outlines a list of crops and vegetables that can be grown in BC along with an outline of when to start seeds indoors, direct-seed, transplant, or cover crops, categorized by seasons.
Spring (March – May)
Spring is a time in BC to plant a wide variety of crops such as beans, beets, carrots, cucumbers, lettuce, peas, and tomatoes. This season is the province’s best to enjoy fresh produce like apples, asparagus, cucumber, kale, lettuce, new potatoes, radish, spinach, Swiss chard, tomatoes, and turnips. For storage, it is recommended to dry or freeze beans, beets, cabbage, carrots, garlic, onions, parsnip, potatoes, rutabaga, and shallots. Additionally, spring is the season to store apples, beets, carrots, mushrooms, onions, parsnips, potatoes, and rutabaga, and farmers can choose to directly plant or transplant many summer crops.
Summer (June – August)
Summer is the ideal time for planting and taking care of crops such as corn, melons, peppers, applies, apricots, artichoke, beans, beets, blackberries, blueberries, broccoli, cabbage (savoy, red), carrots, cauliflower, celery, cherries, corn, cucumber, fennel (bulb), garlic, kale, leek, lettuce, melons, mustard greens, nectarines, onions (green, red, yellow), parsnip, peaches, pears, peppers, plumb, potatoes (red, russet, white, yellow), prunes, radish, raspberries, rhubarb, rutabagas, shallots, spinach, summer squash, strawberries, Swiss chard, tomatoes, turnips (white), zucchini, and squash. It’s also the time to move late-season vegetables like Brussels sprouts and overwintered cabbage to new locations.
Fall (September – December)
Fall in BC is the perfect time to plant crops like cauliflower, broccoli, apples, artichoke, beets, Brussels sprouts, cabbage (green, red, savoy), potatoes (red, russet, white, yellow), carrots, rutabaga, celery, corn, cranberries, cucumber, kiwi, lettuce, fennel (bulb), garlic, kale, leek, mustard greens, onions (red, yellow), parsnip, pears, peppers, pumpkin, quince, spinach, squash (winter), Swiss chard, tomatoes, turnips (white), and zucchini. Beans, shallots, and onions can be stored either dried or frozen. Some crops like spinach and radishes can also be planted directly for a fall harvest.
Winter (January – February)
Winter is British Columbia’s season to plant or maintain crops such as apples, apricots, artichokes, beans, beets, blackberries, blueberries, broccoli, cabbage (savoy, red), carrots, cauliflower, celery, cherries, corn, cucumber, fennel (bulb), garlic, lettuce, melons, mustard greens, nectarines, onions, parsnip, peaches, pears, peppers, plum, potatoes (red, russet, white, yellow), prunes, radish, raspberries, rhubarb, rutabagas, shallots, spinach, squash (summer), strawberries, Swiss chard, tomatoes, turnips (white), zucchini. Vegetables like kale, leeks, overwintered onions, and some brassicas (e.g., broccoli and Brussels sprouts) can typically also be planted.
The text above is not an exhaustive list, but it is a helpful resource to plan agricultural activities based on the seasonal conditions in BC. If you are interested in buying farmland in British Columbia, get in touch with our expert team at BC Farm & Ranch Realty!