"Start cabbage indoors."

December 27, 2013 7:37 AM

sproutrobot.com is just the thing for all of the gardeners who feel the walls starting to close in. Give it your ZIP code and sproutrobot will do the rest.

...and by "the rest," I mean that it will tell you when to start seeds and plant outside according to your local USDA zone. You will still have to dig holes in the dirt. Now you can do something with all of the seed catalogs that are starting to show up.

Not all ZIPs are in their database...if yours isn't, try one for the closest large city or town.

posted by jquinby (14 comments total)

SproutRobot is just getting started and right now we only support zip codes in the United States. We are very much aware that there is a big, garden-savvy world outside of the U.S. and are working hard to add support for everyone.

I mean, no shocker there, but still: Boooooooooo.
posted by Kitteh at 7:40 AM on December 27, 2013 [5 favorites]

Hmm.. My zip is in their database, but none of the 'Buy Seeds' links are working. Still good information! We bought a house last year, and my summer project is going to be landscaping /setting up a garden. I have no idea how to grow things; this is very helpful.
posted by Fig at 7:51 AM on December 27, 2013

Cute idea, but I'm suspicious of their calendar. I put in the nearest zip they knew about, which happened to be 99701, for Fairbanks, AK. They want me to plans scallions and onions etc. on May 14, when I expect the ground to still be frozen (usually I plant over Memorial Day), but then they want me to wait until July 14 to plant all the leafy greens (kale, lettuce, etc., etc, carrots!), which is absurd. I've only got until the end of August, realistically, so I need that time in the ground, especially for the carrots and squash.
posted by leahwrenn at 8:22 AM on December 27, 2013

It seemed pretty accurate for my zip, and it is surprisingly hard to find resources that list things out as plainly as this, so I approve. I think I'll try following this robot's advice for next year, unless God decides to fuck everything up again by making it snow in May.
posted by Think_Long at 8:26 AM on December 27, 2013

Cute idea, but they're not ready for production. "Get Instructions" hangs on Chrome, and with my standard FireFox+NoScript, no matter how many domains I permit it still just fails (at get_container_type). I wouldn't recommend it to anybody.
posted by benito.strauss at 9:47 AM on December 27, 2013

Something I just learned about in the last week - grafting tomatoes The claim is crappy producers like brandywine can be grafted on good rootstock to make 'em great producers.

Now if only the rootstock seed for the grafts were inexpensive....
posted by rough ashlar at 10:11 AM on December 27, 2013

It was working fine until it told me to plant okra.
posted by headnsouth at 10:24 AM on December 27, 2013

$25 to join. If there's a free version (the scheduler without the seeds being mailed to you), it isn't clear.

That idea is available for free at several other places on the web:
Burpee
AllThingsPlants
Gardening123
posted by IAmBroom at 10:28 AM on December 27, 2013 [2 favorites]

For people in the U.S., state-specific planting information is often provided by the state's extension service. For example, some planting calendars:

Florida
North Carolina (central)
Texas (North Central)

posted by needled at 11:25 AM on December 27, 2013 [1 favorite]

Ah, excellent point on the extension offices. Here are the guides for my fellow Tennesseans. All PDFs, sorry.

Spring-Planted/Cool Season Vegetables
Warm Season Garden Vegetables
Fall Vegetable Gardens
posted by jquinby at 12:11 PM on December 27, 2013

"Start cabbage indoors." Like many Americans I shout this upon encountering a new moving of colors as a matter of course, and rely upon the non-response to structure my fragile, fragile world into blocks of color that clean various aspects of my body and possessions. When my playful screams begin to yield cabbage will I need to leave my house?
posted by passerby at 6:40 PM on December 27, 2013

Wow, it thinks my zip code is in Boise, 400 miles away. Bzzzt.
posted by Hello Dad, I'm in Jail at 7:49 PM on December 27, 2013

Plant mint is bad advice no matter what your Zip code.
posted by bricksNmortar at 8:58 PM on December 27, 2013 [1 favorite]

You can't have a mojito without mint.
posted by jquinby at 1:59 PM on December 28, 2013 [1 favorite]