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 USDA zone info for Harvard should be read to determine when you can plant strawberries.

Planting Calendar for Strawberries

Frost tolerance for strawberries:	Very tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	Up to 7 weeks before last frost.

You can plant strawberries much earlier in the year because they are very cold tolerant.

The earliest that you can plant strawberries in Harvard 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 strawberries and expect a good harvest is probably September. If you wait any later than that and your strawberries may not have a chance to fully mature. If you are starting your strawberries indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a few weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost has passed is on April 15 in Harvard. It might get as low as -15°F during the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Harvard may not be accurate from year to year the actual date of last frost changes from year to year. Half of the time in Harvard last frost occurs after April 15 so just be sure to be ready to cover your strawberries in the event of a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Harvard

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 Harvard

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