When to Plant Parsnip in Denison, IA

One of the first steps you take when you are getting a good idea 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 first chance to plant parsnip in Denison should be estimated by checking out the USDA zone info.


Planting Calendar for Parsnip

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

Parsnip are one of those plants that can tolerate a little bit of cold weather which tells us that you can get them planted earlier than other frost tender plants.

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Legend 
A good time to plant parsnip
Possibly ok, but a risky time to plant parsnip
Probably not a good time to plant parsnip

The earliest that you can plant parsnip in Denison 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. If you wait any later than that and your parsnip may not have a chance to fully mature. You can get started a couple of weeks earlier by starting your parsnip indoors.

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost has passed is on April 15 in Denison. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of -20°F.

Since the USDA zone info for Denison is an average the actual date of last frost can change quite a bit from year to year. Half of the time in Denison last frost occurs after April 15 so make sure that you are ready to cover your parsnip if you have a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Denison

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 Denison

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