Before planting it is a good idea to find your USDA Zone info to estimate your garden schedule. The most important data that the zone info tells us is average last frost and the lowest expected temperature for your area.

By looking at the USDA zone info for Decorah you should be able to figure out when it's the best time to plant pea.

Planting Calendar for Pea

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

Since pea are one of those plants that can tolerate quite a bit of cold weather you can plant them much earlier in the year than other plants that might not handle the cold.

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

The last month that you can plant pea and expect a good harvest is probably August. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your pea may not have a chance to fully mature. You can get started a couple of weeks earlier by starting your pea indoors.

Last Frost Date

In Decorah the average date of last frost happens on May 15. In the coldest months of winter you can expect an average low temperature of -25°F.

Since the USDA zone info for Decorah may not be accurate from year to year the actual date of last frost changes from year to year. Since half of the time in Decorah it frosts late in the year after May 15 be ready to cover your pea if you have a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Decorah

Here is the info for USDA Zone 4b.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	May 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	September 15
Lowest Expected Low	-25°F
Highest Expected Low	-20°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is -25°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near -20°F.

Plants to Grow in Decorah

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