One of the first steps you take when you are determining 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 earliest that you can plant potatos in Adel should be figured out by referring to the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Potatos

Frost tolerance for potatos:	Very tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	Up to 7 weeks before last frost.

Since potatos are very cold tolerant you can plant them much earlier in the year than plants that are more sensitive to the cold.

The earliest that you can plant potatos in Adel 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 potatos and expect a good harvest is probably September. If you wait any later than that and your potatos may not have a chance to really do well. If you are starting your potatos indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a couple of weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

In Adel the average date of last frost happens on April 15. In the coldest months of winter you can expect an average low temperature of -20°F.

Since the USDA zone info for Adel is an average the actual date of last frost is different every year. Half of the time in Adel last frost occurs after April 15 so just be sure to be ready to protect your potatos in the event of a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Adel

Here is the info for USDA Zone 5a.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	April 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	October 15
Lowest Expected Low	-20°F
Highest Expected Low	-15°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is -20°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near -15°F.

Plants to Grow in Adel

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