The USDA Zone info is a great tool for gardeners to help us estimate your gardening schedule. The most important data that the zone info tells us is average last frost and the lowest expected temperature for your area.

It's a good idea to figure out when it's the best time to plant parsnip by reviewing the USDA zone info for Merrillville.

Planting Calendar for Parsnip

Frost tolerance for parsnip:	Tolerant of some frost.
When to plant:	Up to 5 weeks before last frost.

Since parsnip are one of those plants that can tolerate a little bit of cold weather you can plant them just a bit earlier in the year than other plants that might not handle the cold.

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

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost is on April 15 in Merrillville. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of -15°F.

Keep in mind that USDA zone info for Merrillville is an average and the actual date of last frost changes from year to year. Half of the time in Merrillville it frosts late in the year after April 15 so just be sure to be ready to cover your parsnip in the event of one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Merrillville

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 Merrillville

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