State × crop calendar

Corn planting in Arizona.

  • Primary crop
  • Zone 8b
  • 240-day season
  • Last frost March 15
  • Row Crop
  • Frost Sensitive

Corn planting in Arizona is shaped by the state's 8b dominant hardiness zone, last frost date around March 15, and a 240-day growing season. Corn is widely grown in Arizona — commercially significant or common in home gardens and food plots.

Planting dates on this page are climatological estimates from USDA frost-date norms and zone-typical planting offsets. Verify against University of Arizona Cooperative Extension for variety- and county-specific guidance.

Planting calendar — 2026

Frost-anchored windows.

Corn · Arizona · planting calendar

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDeclast frostfirst frostSPRING PLANTING
Ideal windowEarliest / latest tailsFrost zone

Planting windows shift earlier in southern parts of the state and later in northern parts. Use last frost date in your specific county as the reference.

Planting windows

Earliest → ideal → latest.

Spring planting

Corn

Earliest

March 8

Ideal start

March 15

Ideal end

April 5

Latest

April 19

Soil-temp trigger

Wait for 50°F at 2-inch soil depth — typically 1 week after last frost in northern states; close to last frost in southern states.

Harvest window

Typical start

June 13

Typical end

July 13

Harvest timing varies with planting date and seasonal weather — these dates are typical for the ideal planting window.

Growing notes

Corn grows well in Arizona's typical climate. Arizona's 240-day growing season and 8b hardiness zone support reliable production with appropriate variety selection.

Corn is widely grown in Arizona — commercially significant or common in home gardens and food plots.

Agronomy reference

Corn fundamentals.

Soil-temp minimum

50°F

Soil-temp optimum

60–86°F

Days to maturity

90–120

Water (in/wk)

1–1.5"

Soil pH

6–6.8

Nitrogen demand

high

Growing-degree-day requirement: 2400 GDD (base 50°F) from planting to maturity.

Maturity varies by hybrid relative maturity (RM) — choose RM appropriate for your growing season length.

Common pests to watch

  • European corn borer
  • Western corn rootworm
  • Corn earworm

Pest pressure varies by region and year. Confirm current outbreaks with University of Arizona Cooperative Extension.

Common diseases

  • Gray leaf spot
  • Northern corn leaf blight
  • Tar spot

Resistance varieties shift each year. Check the current variety trial report for your state.

Variety selection

Corn varieties for Arizona live with your extension.

Variety selection

Variety performance is micro-regional and changes with each year's trial cycle. We don't republish variety lists — instead, we point directly at the source.

University of Arizona Cooperative Extension

Search the extension site for “corn variety trial” or “recommended corn varieties” to find the current report.

Yield varies significantly by variety, soil, fertility, and management. Consult your state extension service for variety performance trials in your region.

Corn timing. Live alerts.

Bield: Farm ties weather and soil-temperature stations in your county to crop planting thresholds — get notified the day soil temp clears your target window.

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