One of the first steps you take when you are estimating your gardening schedule is find your USDA Zone info. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

The USDA zone info for Braidwood can be read to figure out when it's the best time to plant broccoli.

Planting Calendar for Broccoli

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

Broccoli can survive in some cold which tells us that you can plant them a bit earlier in the year than other frost tender plants.

The earliest that you can plant broccoli in Braidwood 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. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your broccoli may not have a chance to fully mature. Starting your broccoli indoors is a great way to get them started a couple of weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

In Braidwood the average date of last frost happens on April 15. You can expect an average low temperature of -15°F in the coldest months of winter.

Keep in mind that USDA zone info for Braidwood is not always accurate and the actual date of last frost can change quite a bit from year to year. Half of the time in Braidwood there is a last frost after April 15 so make sure that you are ready to protect your broccoli in the event of a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Braidwood

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 Braidwood

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