The USDA Zone info is a great tool for gardeners to help us determine your gardening schedule. The most important data that the zone info tells us is average last frost and the lowest expected temperature for your area.

A way of estimating when to plant parsnip is to consult the USDA zone info for Bessemer.

Planting Calendar for Parsnip

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

Parsnip tend to make it in mild cold which means that you can plant them a bit earlier in the year than other frost tender plants.

The earliest that you can plant parsnip in Bessemer 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 parsnip and expect a good harvest is probably September. Any later than that and your parsnip may not have a chance to really do well. If you are starting your parsnip indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a couple of weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost has passed is on March 15 in Bessemer. It might get as low as 10°F during the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Bessemer is just an average the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Half of the time in Bessemer it frosts late in the year after March 15 so be sure to be ready to protect your parsnip if you have one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Bessemer

Here is the info for USDA Zone 8a.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	March 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	November 15
Lowest Expected Low	10°F
Highest Expected Low	15°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is 10°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near 15°F.

Plants to Grow in Bessemer

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