When to Plant Cantaloupes in Harlan, IA

The USDA Zone info is a great tool for gardeners to help us estimate your gardening schedule. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

The first chance to plant cantaloupes in Harlan can be figured out by checking out the USDA zone info.


Planting Calendar for Cantaloupes

Frost tolerance for cantaloupes: Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant: After the last frost.

You should not plant cantaloupes until after the last frost has passed because they do not do well in cold weather.

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

The earliest that you can plant cantaloupes in Harlan 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 cantaloupes and expect a good harvest is probably August. Any later than that and your cantaloupes may not have a chance to grow to maturity. If you are starting your cantaloupes indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a few weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is April 15 in Harlan. It might get as low as -20°F during the coldest months of winter.

Keep in mind that USDA zone info for Harlan is just an average and the actual date of last frost changes from year to year. Since half of the time in Harlan there is a last frost after April 15 be ready to cover your cantaloupes in the event of a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Harlan

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 Harlan

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