One of the first steps you take when you are estimating 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.

The USDA zone info for Chesterton should be used to estimate when it's possible to plant arabis.

Planting Calendar for Arabis

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

You can plant arabis a lot earlier in the year because they are one of those plants that can tolerate quite a bit of cold weather.

The earliest that you can plant arabis in Chesterton 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 arabis and expect a good harvest is probably September. Any later than that and your arabis may not have a chance to really do well. You can get started a couple of weeks earlier by starting your arabis indoors.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is April 15 in Chesterton. You should expect an average low temperature of -10°F in the coldest months of winter.

Just be sure to remember that the actual date of last frost may not be accurate from year to year because it is based on the USDA zone info for Chesterton and it can change quite a bit from year to year. Half of the time in Chesterton you get a frost after April 15 so always be ready to cover your arabis in the event of a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Chesterton

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 Chesterton

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