The USDA Zone info is a great tool for gardeners to help us figure out your gardening schedule. The most important data that the zone info tells us is average last frost and the lowest expected temperature for your area.

One way of determining when you can plant parsnip is to refer to the USDA zone info for Wilmington.

Planting Calendar for Parsnip

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

You can plant parsnip a little bit earlier in the year because they do well in moderate cold.

The earliest that you can plant parsnip in Wilmington 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 parsnip and expect a good harvest is probably September. Any later than that and your parsnip may not have a chance to grow to maturity. If you are starting your parsnip indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a little bit earlier.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is April 15 in Wilmington. You should expect an average low temperature of 0°F in the coldest months of winter.

Keep in mind that the actual date of last frost is not always accurate because it is based on the USDA zone info for Wilmington and it is different every year. Half of the time in Wilmington there is a last frost after April 15 so make sure that you are ready to protect your parsnip in the event of a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Wilmington

Here is the info for USDA Zone 7a.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	April 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	October 15
Lowest Expected Low	0°F
Highest Expected Low	5°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is 0°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near 5°F.

Plants to Grow in Wilmington

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