One of the first steps you take when you are making a decision about 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.

You will be able to figure out when to plant bittercress by using the USDA zone info for Spencer.

Planting Calendar for Bittercress

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

Bittercress tend to make it in a tiny bit of cold which means that you can plant them a bit earlier in the year than more sensitive plants.

The earliest that you can plant bittercress in Spencer 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 bittercress and expect a good harvest is probably August. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your bittercress may not have a chance to fully mature. If you are starting your bittercress 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 Spencer. You should expect an average low temperature of -20°F in the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Spencer is an average the actual date of last frost can change quite a bit from year to year. Since half of the time in Spencer there is a last frost after April 15 be ready to cover your bittercress in the event of a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Spencer

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 Spencer

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