When to Plant Cucumbers in Dubuque, IA

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

You will be able to estimate when to plant cucumbers by using the USDA zone info for Dubuque.


Planting Calendar for Cucumbers

Frost tolerance for cucumbers: Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant: After all chance of frost has passed.

Cucumbers do not do well in cold weather which means that you have to wait until it warms up after the last frost when the weather gets warmer before you can plant them.

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

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

The last month that you can plant cucumbers and expect a good harvest is probably August. If you wait any later than that and your cucumbers may not have a chance to fully mature. If you are starting your cucumbers indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a few weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost when the weather gets warmer is on April 15 in Dubuque. It might get as low as -20°F during the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Dubuque is not always accurate the actual date of last frost is different every year. Half of the time in Dubuque you get a frost after April 15 so make sure that you are prepared to cover your cucumbers in the event of a surprise late frost.

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.