How to Grow Barley
Barley At a Glance
Difficulty
Moderate
Category
Grain
Sun Exposure
Full Sun
Frost Tolerance
Frost Hardy
Cold Hardiness
Survives to -15°C
Plant Family
Poaceae
Growing Season
Cool Season
Plant Lifecycle
Annual
How to Start It
★ Recommended for beginners
Barley handles frost, so sow it in early spring, about 6 weeks before your last frost, as soon as you can work the soil. Scatter the seeds about 5 cm apart, press them 2 cm deep and rake the soil over them. They sprout in 4 to 10 days. If your seed is a winter type, sow it instead about 6 weeks before your first fall frost, and it ripens the next summer.
Barley is one of the easiest grains for a first try: it is quick, likes cool weather and grows fine in poorer soil. A small patch also makes a handy cover crop (a crop grown to protect and feed the soil), since you can cut it down before it makes seed and leave it on the bed.
When To Start
First chance to plant
45 Days Before Last Frost
Last chance to plant
60 Days Before First Frost
When should you plant Barley?
Your planting dates depend on your local climate. Sign up and add your location to unlock personalized dates.
Your Barley Planting Window
Start planting
May 15, 2026
Last chance
Sep 10, 2026
Your Barley Calendar
Set your location to turn these into exact dates and reminders.
Sow barley outdoors now, it handles frost
45 days before your last frost· every year
Optional: sow winter barley now to ripen next summer
45 days before your first frost· every year· optional
Cut barley when it is golden and the grain is hard
55 days after your last frost· every year· optional
Did you water your barley seedlings today? Keep the top of the soil damp until they are up and growing.
About 1 days after you plant it
Time to thin the barley seedlings: snip the extras at soil level so each one has room to grow.
About 20 days after you plant it
How is your barley doing? It needs little care, so just pull weeds while the plants are young.
About 43 days after you plant it
Your barley is heading toward harvest. Wait until the stalks and heads are golden and fully dry before you cut.
About 77 days after you plant it
Picking time may be here: check your barley.
About 100 days after you plant it
The Journey Ahead
Barley's Lifecycle
Seedling
Mature Plant
Seed Production
Step 1
Prepare Your Space
2 cm
Seeding Depth
5 cm
Plant Spacing
15 cm
Row Spacing
16
Plants / Sq Ft
Vertical Growing
No.
Method: None
Succession Planting
Yes.
Good Companions
Bad Companions
Step 2
Planting & Sprouting
Expect sprouts in 4–10 days
Growing Tips
- 1Grow barley in full sun, at least 6 hours a day.
- 2It does well in ordinary soil, so a thin layer of compost raked in before sowing is plenty.
- 3Water when the top few cm of soil are dry, and keep the soil evenly moist while the heads are forming.
- 4Skip extra feeding, because rich soil makes tall, soft stalks that fall over in wind and rain.
- 5Birds love the ripening grain, so cover the patch with netting once the heads appear.
- 6Wash aphids off the leaves with a spray of water, and sow a few marigolds or some dill nearby to bring in the insects that eat them.
Seedling Phase
Step 3
Growth & Maturity
~100
Days to Maturity
90 cm
Mature Height
3 cm
Mature Width
Pests to Watch For
Diseases to Watch For
Mature Plant
Step 4
Harvesting
Harvest Window
21 days
When to Pick
Harvest grain when fully dry
How to Harvest
- 1Barley is ready when the whole plant has turned golden, the heads droop and a grain feels hard when you bite it.
- 2Cut the stalks near the ground with pruners or sharp shears, on a dry day.
- 3Tie them in small bundles and hang them, heads down, in a dry, airy spot for 1 to 2 weeks.
- 4Rub the heads between your hands, or beat them inside a pillowcase, to free the grain.
- 5Pour the grain slowly from one bowl to another in a light breeze so the wind blows the chaff (the papery husks) away.
- 6Most barley keeps a tight husk on each grain even after this, so hulless types are the easiest to cook at home.
Step 5
Saving Seeds
How to Save Seeds
Barley flowers pollinate themselves, so the seeds grow true and you do not need to keep varieties apart. Your grain is your seed: set aside some of the biggest, cleanest grains from your harvest. Make sure they are fully dry and hard before storing, since damp grain goes mouldy. Store them in a labelled jar or envelope somewhere cool, dark and dry, where they keep about 3 to 5 years.
Seed Production
Still have a question?
Ask your coach about your barley.
This page covers what we thought to write down. Your barley will do something it never mentions, and that is the day a coach beats a guide. Ask Coach Lumen one question right now, free, no account.
