One of the first steps you take when you are estimating your gardening schedule is find your 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.

By using the USDA zone info for Manhattan it's a good idea to estimate when you can plant romanesco.

Planting Calendar for Romanesco

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

Since romanesco do well in moderate cold you can plant them a bit earlier in the year than plants that are more sensitive to the cold.

The earliest that you can plant romanesco in Manhattan 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 romanesco and expect a good harvest is probably September. Any later than that and your romanesco may not have a chance to really do well. If you are starting your romanesco indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a few weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

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

Since the USDA zone info for Manhattan is just an average the actual date of last frost changes from year to year. Since half of the time in Manhattan last frost occurs after April 15 be ready to protect your romanesco if you have a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Manhattan

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 Manhattan

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