One of the first steps you take when you are making a decision about 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.

It's possible to estimate when it's the best time to plant black pepper by reviewing the USDA zone info for Pontiac.

Planting Calendar for Black pepper

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

Black pepper are not cold tolerant which tells us that it's important to wait until it warms up after the last frost has passed before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant black pepper in Pontiac 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 black pepper and expect a good harvest is probably August. If you wait any later than that and your black pepper may not have a chance to grow to maturity. You can get started a couple of weeks earlier by starting your black pepper indoors.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is April 15 in Pontiac. You should expect an average low temperature of -15°F in the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Pontiac is an average the actual date of last frost can change quite a bit from year to year. Half of the time in Pontiac there is a last frost after April 15 so make sure that you are ready to protect your black pepper in the event of a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Pontiac

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 Pontiac

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