Before planting it is a good idea to find your USDA Zone info to figure out your garden schedule. 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 determine when to plant tomatos by looking at the USDA zone info for Chester.

Planting Calendar for Tomatos

Frost tolerance for tomatos:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After the last frost when the weather gets warmer.

Tomatos do not do well in cold weather which tells us that you really should wait until it warms up after the last frost when the weather gets warmer before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant tomatos in Chester 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 tomatos and expect a good harvest is probably August. Any later than that and your tomatos may not have a chance to grow to maturity. If you are starting your tomatos indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a couple of weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

In Chester the average date of last frost happens on April 15. You can expect an average low temperature of -5°F in the coldest months of winter.

Just be sure to remember that the actual date of last frost is just an average because it is based on the USDA zone info for Chester and it is different every year. Half of the time in Chester it frosts late in the year after April 15 so be sure to be ready to protect your tomatos in the event of one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Chester

Here is the info for USDA Zone 6b.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	April 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	October 15
Lowest Expected Low	-5°F
Highest Expected Low	0°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is -5°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near 0°F.

Plants to Grow in Chester

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