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Rows of green and purple mustard greens growing in a vegetable garden

Oregon · Washington · Idaho

When to plant mustard greens

Plant in the garden: Portland and Seattle Mar 1 – Apr 12; Spokane Apr 1 – May 13; Boise Mar 20 – May 1; Bend Apr 28 – Jun 9.

Mustard greens are leafy cabbage-family plants with a sharp, horseradish-like bite, cooked in Southern, Indian and East Asian dishes or used young in salad mixes. They come in green, red, frilly and broad-leaved types, from feathery mizuna to big purple Red Giant. Seeds from some mustard species are what's ground into the condiment.

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Puts mustard greens on your free plan, with dates for your town and a spot in your beds.

Difficulty
Easy
Sun
Full sun to part shade
Spacing
Thin to 6 to 12 inches apart
Planting depth
¼ to ½ inch deep
Frost
Handles light frost
First harvest
About 40 days after planting

Fast, peppery greens that handle frost. Like arugula, they bolt as spring days lengthen, so sow early and sow again in late summer for the mildest fall and winter leaves.

Mustard green planting dates

TownsPlant in the gardenPlant again for fall
Portland, OR, Seattle and Tacoma, WAMar 1 – Apr 12Aug 20 – Sep 10
Spokane, WAApr 1 – May 13Aug 17 – Sep 7
Boise and Meridian, IDMar 20 – May 1Aug 20 – Sep 10
Bend and Redmond, ORApr 28 – Jun 9Jul 20 – Aug 10
Astoria, ORMar 25 – May 6Aug 20 – Sep 10

Dates for six main cities. For any of the other 80 towns, type it in the box at the top of the page or browse all towns.

Mustard green year at a glance

TaskJFMAMJJASOND
PlantMarAprAugSep
HarvestAprMayJunOctNovDec

Around Portland. Colder towns, especially east of the Cascades, run a few weeks later; the table above has your town's planting dates.

How to grow mustard greens

  1. Prepare the bed: loosen the soil and mix in an inch or two of compost.
  2. Plant seeds on your city's dates, ¼ to ½ inch deep, Thin to 6 to 12 inches apart.
  3. Keep the soil evenly moist until sprouts appear, which can take one to three weeks in cool soil.
  4. Plant again on your city's dates for a fall harvest.
  5. Harvest: Pick baby leaves about three weeks after sowing, or cut outer leaves from full-size plants. Leaves picked after a frost are milder.

Growing mustard greens in your part of the Northwest

The same plant behaves differently on the wet west side, the foggy coast and the dry, colder east side.

West-side valleys

Willamette Valley, Puget Sound, southern Oregon

Mustard greens are easy in spring and fall. Fall sowings often hold through winter in mild years.

Coast

Oregon and Washington coast

Cool summers let mustard greens grow longer before bolting.

East of the Cascades

Columbia Basin, Yakima, Boise, Spokane, north Idaho

Heat makes mustard greens bolt and taste harsh, so sow early or for fall.

High desert and mountain towns

Central Oregon, high eastern Oregon valleys, McCall, Salmon

Mustard greens handle frost and grow well in the cool summers.

More mustard green varieties

More widely sold picks that do well somewhere in the Northwest. The tag says which part of the Northwest suits each one best.

Red Giant

Japanese mustard, purple-red leaves · About 45 days

Big, crinkled, purple-red leaves with a strong, hot bite. Very cold-hardy, it's a favorite for fall sowing and stays mildest after frost.

Both sides

Green Wave

Curled mustard · About 45 days

Frilly, bright green leaves with a sharp, spicy flavor. Slower to bolt than most mustards, which helps with spring sowings.

Both sides

Mizuna

Japanese mustard, feathery leaves · About 40 days

Mild, finely cut leaves for salads, and one of the most heat- and cold-tolerant Asian greens. Cut it young and it regrows several times.

Both sides

Southern Giant Curled

Curled mustard, large · About 50 days

Large, ruffled, light green leaves for cooking. An old, widely sold variety that's dependable in fall.

Both sides

How much to grow

How many to plant

For a family of four, a 4- to 6-foot row every three weeks in spring and a bigger sowing in late summer.

What to expect

About 1 pound per 2 feet of row over several pickings.

Storing the harvest

Keep about a week in a bag in the fridge. Blanch and freeze extras.

What to plant after mustard greens

Around Portland, the mustard green harvest wraps up around June. These crops can still go into the same bed, and they come from a different plant family, which helps with rotation.

Portland dates. Pick your town at the top of the page for yours.

Key numbers

Top care tip: Sow small batches every few weeks and keep the soil evenly moist, since dry plants turn tough and extra hot.

Growing notes

What makes the difference in Northwest gardens, in plain language.

Two seasons, not one

Mustard greens are a cool-season brassica, close kin to kale and turnips. They sprout quickly in cool soil, shrug off light frost and grow fast, which makes them one of the easiest greens for early spring and fall in the Northwest.

Long, warm days push them to flower. Spring sowings give you a few weeks of leaves before they bolt, so sow early and in small batches. The better crop here is the late-summer sowing: plants size up in September and October, and frost turns the leaves milder and sweeter.

Soil, spacing and flavor

Any reasonably fertile bed with compost works. Thin seedlings to 6 inches for baby leaves or about a foot for big plants, and eat the thinnings. Even moisture keeps the leaves tender; plants that dry out get tough and much hotter.

Heat sharpens the bite and cold mellows it. Red Giant and other big-leaf types are the spiciest, while mizuna is mild enough for salads.

Pests to watch

Flea beetles chew tiny shot holes in spring seedlings, and cabbage worms and aphids show up later, just as on kale. Floating row cover laid on at sowing keeps both the beetles and the cabbage moths off. Slugs are the main fall and winter pest west of the Cascades.

Rotate mustard with crops outside the cabbage family, since the same pests and soil diseases build up when brassicas follow brassicas.

Good neighbors and crop rotation

Good neighbors

  • Lettuce and spinach. Same cool-season timing; mix them for a spicy salad bed.

Keep apart

  • Other cabbage-family crops in the same bed every year. Shared pests and clubroot build up; rotate.

Cabbage family: Grow cabbage-family crops in a different bed each year and come back to the same spot only every three or four years. Clubroot, which swells and knots the roots, lives in the soil for many years once it arrives, and root maggot pupae wait in last year's bed.

Pests and problems

What most often goes wrong with mustard greens in Northwest gardens, how to spot it and what to do.

Flea beetles

Signs: Tiny holes in the leaves in spring.

What to do: Row cover from sowing.

Slugs

Signs: Ragged holes in wet weather.

What to do: Slug bait and evening checks.

Bolting

Signs: Flower stalks and hot, tough leaves in late spring.

What to do: Grow it as a fall crop, when it holds much longer.

Common questions about growing mustard greens

When should I plant mustard greens in Oregon, Washington and Idaho?

Plant in the garden: Mar 1 – Apr 12 in Portland and Seattle, Apr 1 – May 13 in Spokane, Mar 20 – May 1 in Boise and Apr 28 – Jun 9 in Bend. Pick your town at the top of the page for your own dates.

Why did my mustard greens bolt so fast?

Lengthening days and warm weather trigger flowering. Spring-sown mustard often bolts by June. Sow as early as the soil can be worked, pick often, and plant your main crop in late summer instead.

Can I grow mustard greens through winter in the Northwest?

On the west side and coast, yes in most winters. Plants sown in August keep producing into winter and survive light frosts. A hard freeze in the teens can damage them, so cover with row cover on the coldest nights.

Are mustard flowers edible?

Yes. The yellow flowers and tender flower buds are edible and mildly spicy. Once plants flower, though, the leaves turn tough and bitter.

Also on these lists:

See what else to plant in March, April, August or September.

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