When to Plant Snap beans in Independence, IA

The USDA Zone info is a great tool for gardeners to help us determine 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 opportunity to plant snap beans in Independence can be estimated by using the USDA zone info.


Planting Calendar for Snap beans

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

Since snap beans do not do well in cold weather you need to wait until after all chance of frost has passed before you can plant them.

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

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

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost has passed is on April 15 in Independence. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of -20°F.

Keep in mind that USDA zone info for Independence is an average and the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Half of the time in Independence there is a last frost after April 15 so make sure that you are ready to protect your snap beans in the event of a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Independence

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 Independence

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