One of the best tools that you have as gardeners to help us determine your gardening schedule is the 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.

A way of estimating when to plant gherkins is to check out the USDA zone info for Estherville.

Planting Calendar for Gherkins

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

Since gherkins do not do well in cold weather you really should wait until after the last frost when the weather gets warmer before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant gherkins in Estherville 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 gherkins and expect a good harvest is probably August. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your gherkins may not have a chance to really do well. If you are starting your gherkins indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a few weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

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

Remember that USDA zone info for Estherville is an average and the actual date of last frost is different every year. Half of the time in Estherville you get surprised by a frost after April 15 so be sure to be ready to cover your gherkins in the event of a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Estherville

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 Estherville

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