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.

The earliest that you can plant corn in Storm Lake should be figured out by reviewing the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Corn

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

Since corn do not do well in cold weather it's important to wait until after the last frost when the weather gets warmer before you can plant them.

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

Last Frost Date

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

Since the USDA zone info for Storm Lake may not be accurate from year to year the actual date of last frost is different every year. Since half of the time in Storm Lake you get surprised by a frost after April 15 be ready to protect your corn in the event of a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Storm Lake

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 Storm Lake

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Storm Lake.