One of the first steps you take when you are getting a good idea 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.

By using the USDA zone info for Smithville it's possible to estimate when it's the best time to plant garden cress.

Planting Calendar for Garden cress

Frost tolerance for garden cress:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After the last frost.

It's not a good idea to plant garden cress until after all chance of frost has passed because they require warm weather.

The earliest that you can plant garden cress in Smithville 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 garden cress and expect a good harvest is probably August. Any later than that and your garden cress may not have a chance to fully mature. You can get started a couple of weeks earlier by starting your garden cress indoors.

Last Frost Date

In Smithville the average date of last frost happens on April 15. You should expect an average low temperature of -15°F in the coldest months of winter.

Always keep in mind that the actual date of last frost is just an average because it is based on the USDA zone info for Smithville and it can change quite a bit from year to year. Since half of the time in Smithville last frost occurs after April 15 be ready to cover your garden cress if you have a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Smithville

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 Smithville

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