Before planting it is a good idea to find your USDA Zone info to figure out your garden schedule. The most important data that the zone info tells us is average last frost and the lowest expected temperature for your area.

It's possible to figure out when it's the best time to plant watermelon by referring to the USDA zone info for Clay.

Planting Calendar for Watermelon

Frost tolerance for watermelon:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After all chance of frost has passed.

Since watermelon require warm weather you have to wait until after all chance of frost has passed before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant watermelon in Clay 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 watermelon and expect a good harvest is probably August. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your watermelon may not have a chance to fully mature. You can get started a little bit earlier by starting your watermelon indoors.

Last Frost Date

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

Keep in mind that USDA zone info for Clay is just an average and the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Since half of the time in Clay last frost occurs after April 15 be ready to cover your watermelon in the event of one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Clay

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 Low	5°F
Highest Expected Low	10°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 Clay

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