The USDA Zone info is a great tool for gardeners to help us figure out your gardening schedule. The most important data that the zone info tells us is average last frost and the lowest expected temperature for your area.

The earliest that you can plant rock cress in Niles can be determined by reviewing the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Rock Cress

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

You can plant rock cress a lot earlier in the year because they do well in cold.

The earliest that you can plant rock cress in Niles 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 rock cress and expect a good harvest is probably September. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your rock cress may not have a chance to grow to maturity. You can get started a couple of weeks earlier by starting your rock cress indoors.

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost is on April 15 in Niles. In the coldest months of winter you can expect an average low temperature of -10°F.

Since the USDA zone info for Niles may not be accurate from year to year the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Half of the time in Niles it frosts late in the year after April 15 so make sure that you are prepared to cover your rock cress if you have a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Niles

Here is the info for USDA Zone 6a.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	April 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	October 15
Lowest Expected Low	-10°F
Highest Expected Low	-5°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is -10°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near -5°F.

Plants to Grow in Niles

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