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

In Ottumwa you can estimate when it's a good idea to plant potatos by looking at the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Potatos

Frost tolerance for potatos:	Very tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	Up to 7 weeks before last frost.

Potatos can survive in quite a bit of cold which tells us that you can plant them quite a bit earlier in the year than other plants that might not handle the cold.

The earliest that you can plant potatos in Ottumwa is February. However, you really should wait until March if you don't want to take any chances.

The last month that you can plant potatos and expect a good harvest is probably September. If you wait any later than that and your potatos may not have a chance to really do well. You can get started a couple of weeks earlier by starting your potatos indoors.

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost when the weather gets warmer is on April 15 in Ottumwa. It might get as low as -15°F during the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Ottumwa is an average the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Half of the time in Ottumwa last frost occurs after April 15 so make sure that you are prepared to cover your potatos in the event of one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Ottumwa

Here is the info for USDA Zone 5b.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	April 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	October 15
Lowest Expected Low	-15°F
Highest Expected Low	-10°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is -15°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near -10°F.

Plants to Grow in Ottumwa

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