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

One way of determining when it's the best time to plant rock cress is to refer to the USDA zone info for Wheeling.

Planting Calendar for Rock Cress

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

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

The earliest that you can plant rock cress in Wheeling 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. If you wait any later than that and your rock cress may not have a chance to really do well. Starting your rock cress indoors is a great way to get them started a few weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

In Wheeling the average date of last frost happens on April 15. It might get as low as -15°F during the coldest months of winter.

Remember that USDA zone info for Wheeling is an average and the actual date of last frost changes from year to year. Since half of the time in Wheeling there is a last frost after April 15 be ready to cover your rock cress in the event of a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Wheeling

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 Wheeling

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