Before planting it is a good idea to find your USDA Zone info to determine your garden schedule. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

The earliest that you can plant cantaloupes in Braidwood can be figured out by reviewing the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Cantaloupes

Frost tolerance for cantaloupes:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After the last frost.

It's not a good idea to plant cantaloupes until after the last frost because they do not do well in cold weather.

The earliest that you can plant cantaloupes in Braidwood 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 cantaloupes and expect a good harvest is probably August. Any later than that and your cantaloupes may not have a chance to really do well. You can get started a little bit earlier by starting your cantaloupes indoors.

Last Frost Date

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

It's important to remember that the actual date of last frost may not be accurate from year to year because it is based on the USDA zone info for Braidwood and it will vary from year to year. Since half of the time in Braidwood you get surprised by a frost after April 15 be ready to cover your cantaloupes in the event of one of those late frosts.

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.