One of the best tools that you have as gardeners to help us determine your gardening schedule is the 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.

In Spencer you can estimate when it's possible to plant broccoli by reviewing the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Broccoli

Frost tolerance for broccoli:	Tolerant of some frost.
When to plant:	Up to 5 weeks before last frost.

You can plant broccoli a little earlier in the year because they are one of those plants that can tolerate a little bit of cold weather.

The earliest that you can plant broccoli in Spencer 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 broccoli and expect a good harvest is probably September. Any later than that and your broccoli may not have a chance to fully mature. Starting your broccoli indoors is a great way to get them started a little bit earlier.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is April 15 in Spencer. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of -20°F.

Since the USDA zone info for Spencer is an average the actual date of last frost changes from year to year. Half of the time in Spencer it frosts late in the year after April 15 so just be sure to be ready to protect your broccoli if you have 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.