When to Plant Pearl onions in Glenwood, IA

One of the best tools that you have as gardeners to help us estimate your gardening schedule is the USDA zone info. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

By reviewing the USDA zone info for Glenwood it's a good idea to figure out when it's a good idea to plant pearl onions.


Planting Calendar for Pearl onions

Frost tolerance for pearl onions: Tolerant of a very small amount of frost.
When to plant: Up to 3 weeks before last frost.

Pearl onions tend to make it in very little cold which means that you can plant them a bit earlier in the year than more sensitive plants.

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

The earliest that you can plant pearl onions in Glenwood is March. However, you really should wait until April if you don't want to take any chances.

The last month that you can plant pearl onions and expect a good harvest is probably August. Any later than that and your pearl onions may not have a chance to fully mature. If you are starting your pearl onions indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a little bit earlier.

Last Frost Date

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

Just be sure to remember that USDA zone info for Glenwood may not be accurate from year to year and the actual date of last frost can change quite a bit from year to year. Since half of the time in Glenwood you get a frost after April 15 be ready to cover your pearl onions if you have a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Glenwood

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 Glenwood

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