One of the best tools that you have as gardeners to help us figure out your gardening schedule is the USDA zone info. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

The USDA zone info for Modesto can be used to figure out when it's a good idea to plant snap beans.

Planting Calendar for Snap beans

Frost tolerance for snap beans:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After the last frost when the weather gets warmer.

It's not a good idea to plant snap beans until after the last frost has passed because they do not do well in cold weather.

The earliest that you can plant snap beans in Modesto is March. However, you really should wait until April if you don't want to take any chances.

The last month that you can plant snap beans and expect a good harvest is probably September. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your snap beans may not have a chance to really do well. You can get started a couple of weeks earlier by starting your snap beans indoors.

Last Frost Date

In Modesto the average date of last frost happens on February 15. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of 25°F.

Remember that the actual date of last frost is an average because it is based on the USDA zone info for Modesto and it is different every year. Since half of the time in Modesto you get surprised by a frost after February 15 be ready to cover your snap beans in the event of a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Modesto

Here is the info for USDA Zone 9b.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	February 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	December 15
Lowest Expected Low	25°F
Highest Expected Low	30°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is 25°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near 30°F.

Plants to Grow in Modesto

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