Before planting it is a good idea to find your USDA Zone info to estimate your garden schedule. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

The earliest that you can plant radicchio in Des Moines should be determined by reviewing the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Radicchio

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

Since radicchio do well in moderate cold you can plant them a little earlier in the year than other frost tender plants.

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

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost is on April 15 in Des Moines. You can expect an average low temperature of -15°F in the coldest months of winter.

Always keep in mind that USDA zone info for Des Moines is not always accurate and the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Since half of the time in Des Moines last frost occurs after April 15 be ready to protect your radicchio in the event of a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Des Moines

Here is the info for USDA Zone 5b.

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

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is -15°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near -10°F.

Plants to Grow in Des Moines

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Des Moines.