When to Plant Pumpkins in Prior Lake, MN

One of the first steps you take when you are getting a good idea your gardening schedule is find your USDA Zone info. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

The USDA zone info for Prior Lake can be looked at to estimate when it's a good idea to plant pumpkins.

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Planting Calendar for Pumpkins

Frost tolerance for pumpkins: Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant: After all chance of frost has passed.

Since pumpkins are not cold tolerant it's important to wait until after the last frost has passed before you can plant them.

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

The earliest that you can plant pumpkins in Prior Lake is May. However, you really should wait until June if you don't want to take any chances.

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

Last Frost Date

In Prior Lake the average date of last frost happens on May 15. It might get as low as -25°F during the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Prior Lake is not always accurate the actual date of last frost is different every year. Since half of the time in Prior Lake you get a frost after May 15 be ready to cover your pumpkins in the event of a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Prior Lake

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 Prior Lake

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Prior Lake.