One of the first steps you take when you are determining your gardening schedule is find your USDA Zone info. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

By reviewing the USDA zone info for Walnut Ridge it's possible to figure out when it's possible to plant basil.

Planting Calendar for Basil

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

You really shouldn't plant basil until after the last frost has passed because they do not do well in cold weather.

The earliest that you can plant basil in Walnut Ridge 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 basil and expect a good harvest is probably August. If you wait any later than that and your basil may not have a chance to fully mature. Starting your basil 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 Walnut Ridge. In the coldest months of winter you can expect an average low temperature of 5°F.

Since the USDA zone info for Walnut Ridge is an average the actual date of last frost is different every year. Half of the time in Walnut Ridge last frost occurs after April 15 so just be sure to be ready to protect your basil in the event of a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Walnut Ridge

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 Walnut Ridge

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Walnut Ridge.