When to Plant Jerusalem artichokes in Chapel Hill, NC

Before planting it is a good idea to find your USDA Zone info to determine your garden schedule. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

In Chapel Hill you can figure out when you can plant jerusalem artichokes by reviewing the USDA zone info.


Planting Calendar for Jerusalem artichokes

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

Jerusalem artichokes tend to make it in some cold which means that you can plant them a little bit earlier in the year than more sensitive plants.

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

The earliest that you can plant jerusalem artichokes in Chapel Hill 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 jerusalem artichokes and expect a good harvest is probably September. If you wait any later than that and your jerusalem artichokes may not have a chance to fully mature. Starting your jerusalem artichokes indoors is a great way to get them started a few weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is April 15 in Chapel Hill. It might get as low as 5°F during the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Chapel Hill is not always accurate the actual date of last frost is different every year. Since half of the time in Chapel Hill you get a frost after April 15 be ready to cover your jerusalem artichokes in the event of a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Chapel Hill

Here is the info for USDA Zone 7b.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)April 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)October 15
Lowest Expected Low5°F
Highest Expected Low10°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is 5°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near 10°F.

Plants to Grow in Chapel Hill

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Chapel Hill.