Climate-based cabbage planting guide for Rexburg, Idaho

When to Plant Cabbage in Rexburg

Cabbage is usually an easy fit in Rexburg. The season is generally not the hard part, so gardeners can focus more on quality, consistency, and harvest timing.

Typical Planting Window

Excellent fit in this climate

Use the planting dates below for cabbage in Rexburg.

Start indoors March 17
Typical planting window April 28 – May 12
Method Transplant
Typical days to maturity 70–90

Cabbage is usually started indoors around March 17 and planted outdoors during the normal local window of April 28 to May 12. Most varieties need about 70–90 days to reach maturity once they are in the garden.

Cabbage is usually an easy seasonal fit in Rexburg. The more useful question is how to turn that margin into better sizing, steadier growth, and a cleaner finish.

Even in an easier climate, this crop still pays back uninterrupted growth. The season helps with maturity, but it does not erase the effects of checks that reduce sizing or finish quality.

Best local strategy: Use the normal planting window, avoid growth checks, and keep moisture and spacing consistent so the crop sizes evenly.

Can Cabbage Mature in Rexburg?

Growing degree days measure how much useful warmth typically accumulates during the season. For cabbage, this helps estimate whether local heat accumulation is usually enough for the crop to reach maturity on time.

Available GDD (base 40) 3461
Typical crop GDD target 1000
Heat margin +2461

From the usual planting window, Rexburg typically provides about 3461 growing degree days for cabbage. With a typical crop target of 1000, that leaves a heat margin of +2461. That large heat margin means the crop usually has no trouble reaching maturity here. In practice, planting timing mostly affects how comfortably the crop sizes up and when harvest is ready, not whether the crop can finish.

When Is It Too Late to Plant?

If planting later than usual, this table shows how much growing degree day heat is still available from each point in the season. For cabbage, it is most useful for judging how much freedom you still have to plant for quality, finish, and harvest goals as the season moves along.

Checkpoint Remaining GDD Heat margin Fit vs typical target
Apr 15 3840 +2840 Comfortable
May 1 3736 +2736 Comfortable
May 15 3576 +2576 Comfortable
Jun 1 3299 +2299 Comfortable
Jun 15 3023 +2023 Comfortable
Jul 1 2651 +1651 Comfortable

How Different Cabbage Varieties Affect Results

Most cabbage varieties can succeed in Rexburg in a typical year. That gives gardeners room to choose for the kind of harvest they want, not just for minimum maturity speed.

Varieties that often fit well here include:

  • Golden Acre — a classic early cabbage with strong practical fit in shorter seasons
  • Early Jersey Wakefield — an early pointed cabbage that is useful when speed and spring harvests matter more than storage
  • Stonehead — reliable and approachable, especially where gardeners want a firm early head
  • Red Express — a faster red cabbage option for gardeners who want color without moving all the way into long-season storage types
  • Cheers — productive and strong where the season offers a comfortable cool run
  • Storage No. 4 — better suited where the growing window gives longer room for finishing

Best Cabbage Varieties for Rexburg

Cabbage variety choice in Rexburg is mostly about head size, storage quality, compactness, and how much time you want to give the crop before harvest.

May 12 local season starts September 24 frost pressure returns
Less heat used 3461 GDD available

Hover or tap the dots to see which recommended varieties use that much local heat.

For Rexburg, start with Stonehead and Red Express for cabbage when you want reliable early cabbage or a faster red cabbage option. Choose Early Jersey Wakefield and Golden Acre when you want early pointed spring cabbage or early compact cabbage heads. Look at Storage No. 4 and Cheers when you specifically want storage cabbage or productive main-season cabbage.

Compare each variety’s heat need and maturity timing against the local frost-free window before choosing what to grow.

Fastest / most cushion

Early Jersey Wakefield Very early
800 GDD needed 3461 available before frost
May 12 September 24
Comfortable fit
Why this fit?

Local season fit: Early Jersey Wakefield leaves about 2661 GDD cushion against the normal Rexburg crop heat estimate.

Best for: early pointed cabbage.

A quick pointed cabbage that is useful when speed and spring harvests matter more than storage.

Tradeoff: Not a storage-focused cabbage.

Golden Acre Very early
800 GDD needed 3461 available before frost
May 12 September 24
Comfortable fit
Why this fit?

Local season fit: Golden Acre leaves about 2661 GDD cushion against the normal Rexburg crop heat estimate.

Best for: early compact heads.

A classic early cabbage that gives gardeners a practical short-season path to firm heads.

Tradeoff: Not the biggest or best storage cabbage.

Also realistic

Storage No. 4 Late
1150 GDD needed 3461 available before frost
May 12 September 24
Comfortable fit
Why this fit?

Local season fit: Storage No. 4 leaves about 2311 GDD cushion against the normal Rexburg crop heat estimate.

Best for: storage cabbage.

A longer-season cabbage better suited to places with enough room for a full finish.

Tradeoff: Needs a longer finish than early cabbage.

Cheers Mid-season
1000 GDD needed 3461 available before frost
May 12 September 24
Comfortable fit
Why this fit?

Local season fit: Cheers leaves about 2461 GDD cushion against the normal Rexburg crop heat estimate.

Best for: productive main-season cabbage.

A strong cabbage choice where the season offers a comfortable cool run.

Tradeoff: Needs more room than compact early cabbage.

GDD comparisons are a planning shortcut, not a guarantee. Soil, watering, sowing depth, pests, transplant quality, and harvest goals still affect the final result.

Variety class Typical days to maturity Typical GDD need Local fit
Very early 60–70 800 Good fit
Early 70–80 900 Good fit
Mid-season 80–95 1000 Good fit
Late 95–110 1150 Good fit

Main risk: The usual setbacks here come from management choices rather than from the season itself.

How Frost Affects Planting Dates for Cabbage in Rexburg

Rexburg usually has about 135 frost-free days, with a typical last spring frost around May 12 and a typical first fall frost around September 24.

Typical last spring frost May 12
Typical first fall frost September 24
Typical frost-free days 135
Minimum safe temperature 28°F / -2 °C

Cabbage is generally somewhat frost tolerant and temperatures below about 28°F ( -2 °C) can slow growth or damage plants.

Cabbage is usually tolerant enough of cool conditions that light frost is not the main concern. The more useful question is how early planting affects establishment and overall crop quality.

The most common problems here are not climatic ones. Gardeners usually lose ground through timing, uneven growth, or letting the crop move past its best stage.

In Rexburg, cabbage usually has a solid seasonal margin when planted around April 21. The warmest garden spots are usually south-facing walls, sheltered gardens, raised beds, and sunnier urban lots. Cooler spots like low spots, exposed sites, and shadier yards tend to warm up later and usually provide less heat. For cabbage, warmer garden spots usually improve early growth and can make timing a little more forgiving.

Set up cabbage for steady growth and pest protection

The better results usually come from steady growth, pest protection, and avoiding early setbacks.

Transplant support

Strong young plants help avoid slow starts and uneven sizing.

Pest and weather protection

Brassicas and leafy crops often benefit from simple protection while they establish.

Even growth

Consistent moisture and spacing help the crop size evenly.

Recommendations are based on the local growing margin for this crop. As an Amazon Associate, we may earn from qualifying purchases.

For a broader local overview, see the Rexburg planting guide. You can also use the Growing Degree Day Planner to test planting dates and crop timing.