Before planting it is a good idea to find your USDA Zone info to figure out 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.

The first opportunity to plant gherkins in University Park can be determined by checking out the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Gherkins

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

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

The earliest that you can plant gherkins in University Park 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. If you wait any later than that and your gherkins may not have a chance to grow to maturity. If you are starting your gherkins indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a little bit earlier.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is April 15 in University Park. You should expect an average low temperature of 5°F in the coldest months of winter.

Remember that the actual date of last frost is not always accurate because it is based on the USDA zone info for University Park and it can change quite a bit from year to year. Half of the time in University Park it frosts late in the year after April 15 so make sure that you are ready to cover your gherkins in the event of a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for University Park

Here is the info for USDA Zone 7b.

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

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

Plants to Grow in University Park

You may be interested in your other planting guides for University Park.