Before planting it is a good idea to find your USDA Zone info to figure out your garden schedule. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

By using the USDA zone info for Douglas you should be able to estimate when you can plant gherkins.

Planting Calendar for Gherkins

Frost tolerance for gherkins:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After the last frost.

Gherkins require warm weather which means that you have to wait until it warms up after all chance of frost has passed before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant gherkins in Douglas 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 gherkins and expect a good harvest is probably August. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your gherkins may not have a chance to really do well. Starting your gherkins indoors is a great way to get them started a few weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is March 15 in Douglas. It might get as low as 10°F during the coldest months of winter.

Remember that USDA zone info for Douglas may not be accurate from year to year and the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Since half of the time in Douglas last frost occurs after March 15 be ready to protect your gherkins in the event of one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Douglas

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 Douglas

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