One of the first steps you take when you are estimating 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.

The USDA zone info for Hereford should be used to figure out when it's possible to plant melons.

Planting Calendar for Melons

Frost tolerance for melons:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After the last frost has passed.

Since melons are not cold tolerant it's necessary to wait until after all chance of frost has passed before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant melons in Hereford 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 melons and expect a good harvest is probably August. If you wait any later than that and your melons may not have a chance to grow to maturity. If you are starting your melons indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a couple of weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

In Hereford the average date of last frost happens on April 15. It might get as low as 0°F during the coldest months of winter.

Keep in mind that USDA zone info for Hereford is just an average and the actual date of last frost changes from year to year. Half of the time in Hereford you get surprised by a frost after April 15 so just be sure to be ready to cover your melons in the event of a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Hereford

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 Hereford

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