When to Plant Eggplants in Orange City, IA

One of the first steps you take when you are figuring out your gardening schedule is find your 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.

The best time to plant eggplants in Orange City should be figured out by using the USDA zone info.


Planting Calendar for Eggplants

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

Since eggplants do not do well in cold weather it is necessary to wait until after the last frost when the weather gets warmer before you can plant them.

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

The earliest that you can plant eggplants in Orange City 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 eggplants and expect a good harvest is probably August. If you wait any later than that and your eggplants may not have a chance to fully mature. Starting your eggplants indoors is a great way to get them started a little bit earlier.

Last Frost Date

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

Always keep in mind that USDA zone info for Orange City is an average and the actual date of last frost changes from year to year. Half of the time in Orange City you get a frost after April 15 so always be ready to protect your eggplants in the event of one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Orange City

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 Orange City

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Orange City.