Before planting it is a good idea to find your USDA Zone info to estimate 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 should be able to estimate when it's the best time to plant bell peppers by looking at the USDA zone info for Itasca.

Planting Calendar for Bell Peppers

Frost tolerance for bell peppers:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After the last frost has passed.

It's not a good idea to plant bell peppers until after all chance of frost has passed because they are not cold tolerant.

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

Last Frost Date

In Itasca the average date of last frost happens on April 15. It might get as low as -15°F during the coldest months of winter.

Just be sure to remember that USDA zone info for Itasca may not be accurate from year to year and the actual date of last frost can change quite a bit from year to year. Half of the time in Itasca you get surprised by a frost after April 15 so always be ready to cover your bell peppers in the event of a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Itasca

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 Itasca

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