When to Plant Beets in Dubuque, IA

The USDA Zone info is a great tool for gardeners to help us estimate 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.

The first chance to plant beets in Dubuque can be estimated by referring to the USDA zone info.


Planting Calendar for Beets

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

Since beets are one of those plants that can tolerate a little bit of cold weather you can plant them a little earlier in the year than more sensitive plants.

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

The earliest that you can plant beets in Dubuque 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 beets and expect a good harvest is probably September. Any later than that and your beets may not have a chance to really do well. You can get started a couple of weeks earlier by starting your beets indoors.

Last Frost Date

In Dubuque the average date of last frost happens on April 15. It might get as low as -20°F during the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Dubuque may not be accurate from year to year the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Half of the time in Dubuque it frosts late in the year after April 15 so just be sure to be ready to protect your beets if you have one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Dubuque

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 Dubuque

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