One of the first steps you take when you are figuring out your gardening schedule is find your USDA Zone info. The most important data that the zone info tells us is average last frost and the lowest expected temperature for your area.

In Dexter you can estimate when you can plant romaine lettuce by using the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Romaine lettuce

Frost tolerance for romaine lettuce:	Very tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	Up to 7 weeks before last frost.

Since romaine lettuce are very cold tolerant you can plant them earlier in the year than more sensitive plants.

The earliest that you can plant romaine lettuce in Dexter is February. However, you really should wait until March if you don't want to take any chances.

The last month that you can plant romaine lettuce and expect a good harvest is probably September. If you wait any later than that and your romaine lettuce may not have a chance to grow to maturity. Starting your romaine lettuce indoors is a great way to get them started a couple of weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost when the weather gets warmer is on April 15 in Dexter. You can expect an average low temperature of 0°F in the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Dexter may not be accurate from year to year the actual date of last frost changes from year to year. Half of the time in Dexter last frost occurs after April 15 so just be sure to be ready to cover your romaine lettuce if you have a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Dexter

Here is the info for USDA Zone 7a.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	April 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	October 15
Lowest Expected Low	0°F
Highest Expected Low	5°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is 0°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near 5°F.

Plants to Grow in Dexter

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