One of the best tools that you have as gardeners to help us figure out your gardening schedule is the USDA zone info. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

The best time to plant artichokes in Belle Plaine can be determined by referring to the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Artichokes

Frost tolerance for artichokes:	Tolerant of some frost.
When to plant:	Up to 5 weeks before last frost.

Artichokes do well in mild cold which tells us that you can plant them a bit earlier in the year than other frost tender plants.

The earliest that you can plant artichokes in Belle Plaine is March. However, you really should wait until April if you don't want to take any chances.

The last month that you can plant artichokes and expect a good harvest is probably August. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your artichokes may not have a chance to grow to maturity. Starting your artichokes indoors is a great way to get them started a couple of weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost is on May 15 in Belle Plaine. You should expect an average low temperature of -25°F in the coldest months of winter.

Always keep in mind that the actual date of last frost may not be accurate from year to year because it is based on the USDA zone info for Belle Plaine and it can change quite a bit from year to year. Half of the time in Belle Plaine last frost occurs after May 15 so make sure that you are prepared to cover your artichokes in the event of one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Belle Plaine

Here is the info for USDA Zone 4b.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	May 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	September 15
Lowest Expected Low	-25°F
Highest Expected Low	-20°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is -25°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near -20°F.

Plants to Grow in Belle Plaine

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Belle Plaine.