diff --git a/workspace-server/internal/handlers/template_schedules.go b/workspace-server/internal/handlers/template_schedules.go
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..76a7aeb68
--- /dev/null
+++ b/workspace-server/internal/handlers/template_schedules.go
@@ -0,0 +1,180 @@
+package handlers
+
+// template_schedules.go — read a workspace template's `schedules:`
+// block and seed workspace_schedules with source='template'. Mirrors
+// the org/import flow (org_import.go) so a workspace created directly
+// from a workspace template (e.g. via WorkspaceHandler.Create) lands
+// with the same schedule grid the org/import path would have produced.
+//
+// Issue #24 contract (also enforced by org_import + schedules.go):
+//   - INSERT new rows with source='template'
+//   - On (workspace_id, name) collision, only refresh template-source
+//     rows; runtime-added rows survive re-provisioning untouched
+//   - Never DELETE (additive only)
+//
+// The actual INSERT statement is the canonical orgImportScheduleSQL
+// defined in org.go — reused here verbatim so the four guarantees
+// stay in one place.
+//
+// Hostile-template defenses (a tenant can upload a config.yaml via
+// POST /templates/import or webhook-sync a repo they control):
+//   - config.yaml is loaded through a 1 MiB LimitReader so a YAML
+//     anchor-bomb / billion-laughs cannot pre-explode memory before
+//     unmarshal returns.
+//   - len(schedules), per-schedule cron length, and resolved prompt
+//     body length are all bounded; over-sized entries are skipped
+//     rather than committed.
+//   - Per-row insert errors and ctx cancellation surface to the
+//     caller via the returned counts so partial-seed states are
+//     observable (workspace.go Create logs the (seeded, skipped)
+//     pair when skipped > 0).
+
+import (
+	"context"
+	"errors"
+	"fmt"
+	"io"
+	"log"
+	"os"
+	"path/filepath"
+	"time"
+
+	"gopkg.in/yaml.v3"
+
+	"git.moleculesai.app/molecule-ai/molecule-core/workspace-server/internal/db"
+	"git.moleculesai.app/molecule-ai/molecule-core/workspace-server/internal/scheduler"
+)
+
+// Bounds protecting the seeder against hostile or buggy templates.
+// All chosen with generous headroom relative to legitimate use
+// (reno-stars org template — the largest production schedule grid —
+// runs ~10 entries per workspace, each prompt body well under 1 KiB).
+const (
+	maxTemplateConfigYAMLBytes int64 = 1 << 20  // 1 MiB — hard cap on config.yaml size
+	maxTemplateSchedules             = 100      // 10x current largest grid
+	maxScheduleCronExprLen           = 128      // cron-spec syntax is short by construction
+	maxSchedulePromptBytes           = 16 << 10 // 16 KiB after prompt_file resolution
+)
+
+// templateConfigSchedules is the minimal shape parsed from a workspace
+// template's config.yaml. Only the `schedules:` block is modelled;
+// the rest of the file (providers, runtime_config, …) is opaque to
+// this loader and continues to flow through the existing pass-through
+// in workspace_provision.go.
+type templateConfigSchedules struct {
+	Schedules []OrgSchedule `yaml:"schedules"`
+}
+
+// parseTemplateSchedules reads `<templatePath>/config.yaml` and
+// returns its `schedules:` block (nil + nil error when the file is
+// absent or the block is empty).
+//
+// The file is read through a 1 MiB LimitReader so a billion-laughs
+// or anchor-explosion YAML cannot pre-explode memory before
+// Unmarshal returns. Returns an error only when a present
+// config.yaml fails to read or parse — callers should treat that as
+// a template-author bug rather than a runtime fault. The Create
+// handler logs the error and continues so a broken schedules block
+// can never block workspace provisioning.
+func parseTemplateSchedules(templatePath string) ([]OrgSchedule, error) {
+	if templatePath == "" {
+		return nil, nil
+	}
+	f, err := os.Open(filepath.Join(templatePath, "config.yaml"))
+	if err != nil {
+		if errors.Is(err, os.ErrNotExist) {
+			return nil, nil
+		}
+		return nil, fmt.Errorf("open template config.yaml: %w", err)
+	}
+	defer f.Close()
+
+	// Read maxTemplateConfigYAMLBytes+1 — if we filled the buffer the
+	// underlying file exceeded the cap and we refuse to unmarshal.
+	data, err := io.ReadAll(io.LimitReader(f, maxTemplateConfigYAMLBytes+1))
+	if err != nil {
+		return nil, fmt.Errorf("read template config.yaml: %w", err)
+	}
+	if int64(len(data)) > maxTemplateConfigYAMLBytes {
+		return nil, fmt.Errorf("template config.yaml exceeds %d-byte cap", maxTemplateConfigYAMLBytes)
+	}
+	var cfg templateConfigSchedules
+	if err := yaml.Unmarshal(data, &cfg); err != nil {
+		return nil, fmt.Errorf("parse template config.yaml schedules: %w", err)
+	}
+	if len(cfg.Schedules) > maxTemplateSchedules {
+		return nil, fmt.Errorf("template declares %d schedules; cap is %d", len(cfg.Schedules), maxTemplateSchedules)
+	}
+	return cfg.Schedules, nil
+}
+
+// seedTemplateSchedules INSERTs (or refreshes) each schedule into
+// workspace_schedules with source='template'. Returns (seeded,
+// skipped) counts so the caller can observe partial-seed states.
+//
+// Prompt body resolution mirrors org_import.go: inline `prompt:` wins,
+// else `prompt_file:` is resolved relative to templatePath via
+// resolvePromptRef. Per-schedule failures (bad cron, missing prompt
+// file, DB error, oversize input) are logged with the schedule name
+// quoted via %q (CRLF-safe) and skipped so one bad row never breaks
+// the rest of the grid. A cancelled ctx breaks the loop early.
+//
+// Timezone defaults to "UTC" when unset. Env-var expansion in the
+// timezone field is intentionally not performed — that mirrors the
+// org/import behavior; template authors should pick a literal IANA
+// zone (or rely on UTC + operator overrides per-tenant).
+func seedTemplateSchedules(ctx context.Context, workspaceID, templatePath string, schedules []OrgSchedule) (seeded, skipped int) {
+	for _, sched := range schedules {
+		// Honour caller cancellation — protects against long seed
+		// loops on a request whose client already gave up.
+		if err := ctx.Err(); err != nil {
+			log.Printf("Template schedule seed: ctx cancelled after %d/%d on %s: %v", seeded, len(schedules), workspaceID, err)
+			skipped += len(schedules) - seeded - skipped
+			return
+		}
+		if len(sched.CronExpr) > maxScheduleCronExprLen {
+			log.Printf("Template schedule seed: cron_expr too long (%d > %d) for %q on %s — skipping", len(sched.CronExpr), maxScheduleCronExprLen, sched.Name, workspaceID)
+			skipped++
+			continue
+		}
+		tz := sched.Timezone
+		if tz == "" {
+			tz = "UTC"
+		}
+		enabled := true
+		if sched.Enabled != nil {
+			enabled = *sched.Enabled
+		}
+		prompt, promptErr := resolvePromptRef(sched.Prompt, sched.PromptFile, templatePath, "")
+		if promptErr != nil {
+			log.Printf("Template schedule seed: failed to resolve prompt for %q on %s: %v — skipping", sched.Name, workspaceID, promptErr)
+			skipped++
+			continue
+		}
+		if prompt == "" {
+			log.Printf("Template schedule seed: schedule %q on %s has empty prompt — skipping", sched.Name, workspaceID)
+			skipped++
+			continue
+		}
+		if len(prompt) > maxSchedulePromptBytes {
+			log.Printf("Template schedule seed: prompt too long (%d > %d bytes) for %q on %s — skipping", len(prompt), maxSchedulePromptBytes, sched.Name, workspaceID)
+			skipped++
+			continue
+		}
+		nextRun, nextRunErr := scheduler.ComputeNextRun(sched.CronExpr, tz, time.Now())
+		if nextRunErr != nil {
+			log.Printf("Template schedule seed: invalid cron for %q on %s: %v — skipping", sched.Name, workspaceID, nextRunErr)
+			skipped++
+			continue
+		}
+		if _, err := db.DB.ExecContext(ctx, orgImportScheduleSQL,
+			workspaceID, sched.Name, sched.CronExpr, tz, prompt, enabled, nextRun); err != nil {
+			log.Printf("Template schedule seed: failed to upsert %q on %s: %v", sched.Name, workspaceID, err)
+			skipped++
+			continue
+		}
+		seeded++
+		log.Printf("Template schedule seed: %q (%s, %d chars) upserted on %s (source=template)", sched.Name, sched.CronExpr, len(prompt), workspaceID)
+	}
+	return
+}
diff --git a/workspace-server/internal/handlers/template_schedules_test.go b/workspace-server/internal/handlers/template_schedules_test.go
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..1f3c194fe
--- /dev/null
+++ b/workspace-server/internal/handlers/template_schedules_test.go
@@ -0,0 +1,141 @@
+package handlers
+
+// template_schedules_test.go — unit tests for parseTemplateSchedules.
+//
+// seedTemplateSchedules' DB INSERT path is already covered indirectly
+// by TestImport_OrgScheduleSQLShape (schedules_test.go) since both
+// code paths share the canonical orgImportScheduleSQL constant; the
+// loop logic (default tz, default enabled, prompt resolution, cron
+// validation) is exercised at the parser level here and at the
+// orgImportScheduleSQL level there.
+
+import (
+	"path/filepath"
+	"testing"
+)
+
+func TestParseTemplateSchedules_AbsentFile(t *testing.T) {
+	dir := t.TempDir()
+	// No config.yaml in dir.
+	got, err := parseTemplateSchedules(dir)
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("expected nil error for absent config.yaml, got %v", err)
+	}
+	if got != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("expected nil slice, got %#v", got)
+	}
+}
+
+func TestParseTemplateSchedules_EmptyTemplatePath(t *testing.T) {
+	got, err := parseTemplateSchedules("")
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("expected nil error for empty path, got %v", err)
+	}
+	if got != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("expected nil slice for empty path, got %#v", got)
+	}
+}
+
+func TestParseTemplateSchedules_NoSchedulesBlock(t *testing.T) {
+	dir := t.TempDir()
+	mustWriteFile(t, filepath.Join(dir, "config.yaml"), `
+name: Some Template
+runtime: claude-code
+model: foo/bar
+`)
+	got, err := parseTemplateSchedules(dir)
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("expected nil error when schedules: absent, got %v", err)
+	}
+	if len(got) != 0 {
+		t.Fatalf("expected zero schedules, got %d", len(got))
+	}
+}
+
+func TestParseTemplateSchedules_HappyPath(t *testing.T) {
+	dir := t.TempDir()
+	mustWriteFile(t, filepath.Join(dir, "config.yaml"), `
+name: SEO Agent
+schedules:
+  - name: Continuous tick
+    cron_expr: "*/30 * * * *"
+    timezone: America/Vancouver
+    prompt: |
+      Run one SEO tick.
+  - name: Monday GSC
+    cron_expr: "0 8 * * 1"
+    timezone: America/Vancouver
+    prompt: /seo google
+    enabled: true
+  - name: Disabled placeholder
+    cron_expr: "0 0 1 1 *"
+    prompt: noop
+    enabled: false
+`)
+	got, err := parseTemplateSchedules(dir)
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("parse: %v", err)
+	}
+	if len(got) != 3 {
+		t.Fatalf("expected 3 schedules, got %d", len(got))
+	}
+	if got[0].Name != "Continuous tick" || got[0].CronExpr != "*/30 * * * *" {
+		t.Errorf("schedule[0] mismatch: %+v", got[0])
+	}
+	if got[1].Timezone != "America/Vancouver" {
+		t.Errorf("schedule[1].Timezone = %q, want America/Vancouver", got[1].Timezone)
+	}
+	// Enabled is *bool: nil means "default true" at seed time, false is
+	// explicit opt-out and must survive the YAML round-trip.
+	if got[2].Enabled == nil {
+		t.Errorf("schedule[2].Enabled = nil, want *false")
+	} else if *got[2].Enabled {
+		t.Errorf("schedule[2].Enabled = true, want false")
+	}
+}
+
+func TestParseTemplateSchedules_MalformedYAML(t *testing.T) {
+	dir := t.TempDir()
+	mustWriteFile(t, filepath.Join(dir, "config.yaml"), `
+name: Broken
+schedules:
+  - this is: [not, a, valid
+`)
+	_, err := parseTemplateSchedules(dir)
+	if err == nil {
+		t.Fatal("expected parse error on malformed YAML, got nil")
+	}
+}
+
+// TestParseTemplateSchedules_RejectsOversizeFile gates against the
+// billion-laughs / anchor-bomb DoS class: a hostile config.yaml over
+// the 1 MiB cap must be refused before yaml.Unmarshal runs.
+func TestParseTemplateSchedules_RejectsOversizeFile(t *testing.T) {
+	dir := t.TempDir()
+	// One byte over the cap — fastest path to the gate.
+	pad := make([]byte, maxTemplateConfigYAMLBytes+1)
+	for i := range pad {
+		pad[i] = '#'
+	}
+	mustWriteFile(t, filepath.Join(dir, "config.yaml"), string(pad))
+	if _, err := parseTemplateSchedules(dir); err == nil {
+		t.Fatal("expected oversize-file error, got nil")
+	}
+}
+
+// TestParseTemplateSchedules_RejectsTooManySchedules gates against a
+// hostile config.yaml that flips one row into a 10k-row insert storm.
+func TestParseTemplateSchedules_RejectsTooManySchedules(t *testing.T) {
+	dir := t.TempDir()
+	var b []byte
+	b = append(b, []byte("schedules:\n")...)
+	// maxTemplateSchedules+1 minimal entries — they don't have to be
+	// valid as schedules because the gate trips before resolution.
+	for i := 0; i <= maxTemplateSchedules; i++ {
+		b = append(b, []byte("  - name: s\n    cron_expr: \"* * * * *\"\n    prompt: x\n")...)
+	}
+	mustWriteFile(t, filepath.Join(dir, "config.yaml"), string(b))
+	if _, err := parseTemplateSchedules(dir); err == nil {
+		t.Fatal("expected schedule-count error, got nil")
+	}
+}
diff --git a/workspace-server/internal/handlers/workspace.go b/workspace-server/internal/handlers/workspace.go
index 7af6c779d..b0947d756 100644
--- a/workspace-server/internal/handlers/workspace.go
+++ b/workspace-server/internal/handlers/workspace.go
@@ -769,7 +769,8 @@ func (h *WorkspaceHandler) Create(c *gin.Context) {
 	// runtime/model/tier as JSON — the Config tab needs that to render
 	// even on failed workspaces, so Create owns this Create-only side
 	// effect rather than coupling Auto to a UI concern.
-	if !h.provisionWorkspaceAuto(id, templatePath, configFiles, payload) {
+	provisionOK := h.provisionWorkspaceAuto(id, templatePath, configFiles, payload)
+	if !provisionOK {
 		cfgJSON := fmt.Sprintf(`{"name":%q,"runtime":%q,"tier":%d,"template":%q}`,
 			payload.Name, payload.Runtime, payload.Tier, payload.Template)
 		if _, err := db.DB.ExecContext(ctx, `
@@ -780,6 +781,32 @@ func (h *WorkspaceHandler) Create(c *gin.Context) {
 		}
 	}
 
+	// Seed schedules declared in the workspace template's config.yaml
+	// AFTER provisionWorkspaceAuto succeeds so the scheduler never
+	// fires cron rows against a workspace whose backend never wired
+	// (review feedback PR #1929#1). Async EC2 provisioning may still
+	// fail downstream; scheduler.go is expected to handle non-online
+	// status as a no-op tick. Idempotent across re-creates via
+	// orgImportScheduleSQL's ON CONFLICT clause; runtime-added rows
+	// are preserved (Issue #24 contract). Restart does not re-seed
+	// (so user-deleted template rows stay deleted).
+	//
+	// Non-fatal: a broken schedules: block must never block workspace
+	// provisioning — the workspace row is already live and the grid
+	// is recoverable via POST /workspaces/{id}/schedules.
+	if provisionOK && templatePath != "" {
+		if templateScheds, parseErr := parseTemplateSchedules(templatePath); parseErr != nil {
+			log.Printf("Create %s: parsing template schedules: %v (continuing)", id, parseErr)
+		} else if len(templateScheds) > 0 {
+			seeded, skipped := seedTemplateSchedules(ctx, id, templatePath, templateScheds)
+			if skipped > 0 {
+				log.Printf("Create %s: template schedule partial-seed: seeded=%d skipped=%d total=%d", id, seeded, skipped, len(templateScheds))
+			} else {
+				log.Printf("Create %s: seeded %d/%d template schedules", id, seeded, len(templateScheds))
+			}
+		}
+	}
+
 	c.JSON(http.StatusCreated, gin.H{
 		"id":               id,
 		"status":           "provisioning",