One of the first steps you take when you are determining 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 referring to the USDA zone info for Staunton you will be able to estimate when to plant gherkins.

Planting Calendar for Gherkins

Frost tolerance for gherkins:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After all chance of frost has passed.

Gherkins are not cold tolerant which means that you have to wait until it warms up after the last frost before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant gherkins in Staunton 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 gherkins and expect a good harvest is probably August. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your gherkins may not have a chance to really do well. Starting your gherkins indoors is a great way to get them started a few weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

On average all chance of frost has passed is on April 15 in Staunton. In the coldest months of winter you can expect an average low temperature of -10°F.

Remember that USDA zone info for Staunton is just an average and the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Since half of the time in Staunton you get surprised by a frost after April 15 be ready to protect your gherkins in the event of a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Staunton

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 Staunton

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