When to Plant Cantaloupes in Washington, IA

Before planting it is a good idea to find your USDA Zone info to determine your garden schedule. The most important data that the zone info tells us is average last frost and the lowest expected temperature for your area.

The first chance to plant cantaloupes in Washington should be determined by checking out the USDA zone info.

Create beautiful hand-made plants at forever-plants.com

Planting Calendar for Cantaloupes

Frost tolerance for cantaloupes: Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant: After the last frost has passed.

Since cantaloupes require warm weather you have to wait until after the last frost before you can plant them.

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Legend 
A good time to plant cantaloupes
Possibly ok, but a risky time to plant cantaloupes
Probably not a good time to plant cantaloupes

The earliest that you can plant cantaloupes in Washington is April. However, you really should wait until May if you don't want to take any chances.

The last month that you can plant cantaloupes and expect a good harvest is probably August. If you wait any later than that and your cantaloupes may not have a chance to really do well. You can get started a few weeks earlier by starting your cantaloupes indoors.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is April 15 in Washington. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of -15°F.

Since the USDA zone info for Washington is an average the actual date of last frost changes from year to year. Half of the time in Washington it frosts late in the year after April 15 so be sure to be ready to protect your cantaloupes in the event of a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Washington

Here is the info for USDA Zone 5b.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)April 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)October 15
Lowest Expected Low-15°F
Highest Expected Low-10°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is -15°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near -10°F.

Plants to Grow in Washington

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Washington.