One of the first steps you take when you are figuring out 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.

You should be able to figure out when you can plant pea by reviewing the USDA zone info for Decatur.

Planting Calendar for Pea

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

Pea tend to make it in pretty solid cold which tells us that you can plant them much earlier in the year than more sensitive plants.

The earliest that you can plant pea in Decatur 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 pea and expect a good harvest is probably September. Any later than that and your pea may not have a chance to really do well. If you are starting your pea indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a couple of weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost when the weather gets warmer is on April 15 in Decatur. You should expect an average low temperature of -10°F in the coldest months of winter.

Always keep in mind that the actual date of last frost is an average because it is based on the USDA zone info for Decatur and it changes from year to year. Half of the time in Decatur you get surprised by a frost after April 15 so be sure to be ready to protect your pea if you have a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Decatur

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 Decatur

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