One of the first steps you take when you are figuring out 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.

You should be able to estimate when to plant cauliflower by referring to the USDA zone info for Bristol.

Planting Calendar for Cauliflower

Frost tolerance for cauliflower:	Tolerant of some frost.
When to plant:	Up to 5 weeks before last frost.

Since cauliflower do well in moderate cold you can plant them a bit earlier in the year than other plants that might not handle the cold.

The earliest that you can plant cauliflower in Bristol is February. However, you really should wait until March if you don't want to take any chances.

The last month that you can plant cauliflower and expect a good harvest is probably September. Any later than that and your cauliflower may not have a chance to grow to maturity. Starting your cauliflower 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 Bristol. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of -10°F.

Since the USDA zone info for Bristol is not always accurate the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Half of the time in Bristol you get a frost after April 15 so make sure that you are ready to cover your cauliflower in the event of a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Bristol

Here is the info for USDA Zone 6a.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	April 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	October 15
Lowest Expected Low	-10°F
Highest Expected Low	-5°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 -5°F.

Plants to Grow in Bristol

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