The USDA Zone info is a great tool for gardeners to help us figure out 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.

One way of getting a good idea when you can plant chard is to look at the USDA zone info for Piedmont.

Planting Calendar for Chard

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

Since chard are one of those plants that can tolerate a little bit of cold weather you can plant them a little bit earlier in the year than more sensitive plants.

The earliest that you can plant chard in Piedmont 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 chard and expect a good harvest is probably September. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your chard may not have a chance to fully mature. Starting your chard indoors is a great way to get them started a couple of weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is April 15 in Piedmont. You should expect an average low temperature of 5°F in the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Piedmont is an average the actual date of last frost changes from year to year. Since half of the time in Piedmont you get surprised by a frost after April 15 be ready to cover your chard in the event of a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Piedmont

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 Piedmont

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