One of the best tools that you have as gardeners to help us estimate 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.

You will be able to determine when to plant pumpkins by referring to the USDA zone info for Salida.

Planting Calendar for Pumpkins

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

Since pumpkins do not do well in cold weather it's important to wait until after all chance of frost has passed before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant pumpkins in Salida 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 pumpkins and expect a good harvest is probably August. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your pumpkins may not have a chance to grow to maturity. If you are starting your pumpkins indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a few weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is April 15 in Salida. It might get as low as -15°F during the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Salida is not always accurate the actual date of last frost changes from year to year. Half of the time in Salida it frosts late in the year after April 15 so just be sure to be ready to protect your pumpkins in the event of a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Salida

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 Salida

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