One of the first steps you take when you are making a decision about your gardening schedule is find your USDA Zone info. The most important data that the zone info tells us is average last frost and the lowest expected temperature for your area.

The USDA zone info for Boulder should be used to figure out when you can plant black pepper.

Planting Calendar for Black pepper

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

You really shouldn't plant black pepper until after the last frost when the weather gets warmer because they do not do well in cold weather.

The earliest that you can plant black pepper in Boulder 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 black pepper and expect a good harvest is probably August. Any later than that and your black pepper may not have a chance to grow to maturity. You can get started a little bit earlier by starting your black pepper indoors.

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost has passed is on April 15 in Boulder. In the coldest months of winter you can expect an average low temperature of -15°F.

Always keep in mind that USDA zone info for Boulder is an average and the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Since half of the time in Boulder there is a last frost after April 15 be ready to cover your black pepper in the event of a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Boulder

Here is the info for USDA Zone 5b.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	April 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	October 15
Lowest Expected Low	-15°F
Highest Expected Low	-10°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is -15°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near -10°F.

Plants to Grow in Boulder

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