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.

By checking out the USDA zone info for Trenton it's a good idea to figure out when to plant cantaloupes.

Planting Calendar for Cantaloupes

Frost tolerance for cantaloupes:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After the last frost when the weather gets warmer.

It's probably not a good idea to plant cantaloupes until after the last frost because they do not do well in cold weather.

The earliest that you can plant cantaloupes in Trenton 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 cantaloupes and expect a good harvest is probably August. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your cantaloupes may not have a chance to grow to maturity. If you are starting your cantaloupes indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a few weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is April 15 in Trenton. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of -15°F.

Since the USDA zone info for Trenton is an average the actual date of last frost changes from year to year. Since half of the time in Trenton it frosts late in the year after April 15 be ready to cover your cantaloupes if you have a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Trenton

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 Trenton

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