One of the best tools that you have as gardeners to help us figure out your gardening schedule is the USDA zone info. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

The USDA zone info for Hartford City should be used to figure out when it's a good idea to plant basil.

Planting Calendar for Basil

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

You really shouldn't plant basil until after all chance of frost has passed because they do not do well in cold weather.

The earliest that you can plant basil in Hartford City 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 basil and expect a good harvest is probably August. Any later than that and your basil may not have a chance to really do well. You can get started a little bit earlier by starting your basil indoors.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is April 15 in Hartford City. It might get as low as -15°F during the coldest months of winter.

Keep in mind that USDA zone info for Hartford City is not always accurate and the actual date of last frost is different every year. Since half of the time in Hartford City last frost occurs after April 15 be ready to protect your basil in the event of a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Hartford City

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 Hartford City

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Hartford City.