The USDA Zone info is a great tool for gardeners to help us figure out your gardening schedule. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

The first chance to plant bell peppers in West Lafayette can be estimated by reviewing the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Bell Peppers

Frost tolerance for bell peppers:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After the last frost.

It's not a good idea to plant bell peppers until after the last frost has passed because they are not cold tolerant.

The earliest that you can plant bell peppers in West Lafayette 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 bell peppers and expect a good harvest is probably August. Any later than that and your bell peppers may not have a chance to really do well. Starting your bell peppers indoors is a great way to get them started a little bit earlier.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is April 15 in West Lafayette. It might get as low as -15°F during the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for West Lafayette is just an average the actual date of last frost can change quite a bit from year to year. Since half of the time in West Lafayette it frosts late in the year after April 15 be ready to protect your bell peppers if you have a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for West Lafayette

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 West Lafayette

You may be interested in your other planting guides for West Lafayette.