One of the best tools that you have as gardeners to help us determine your gardening schedule is the 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.

A common way of figuring out when it's possible to plant shallots is to use the USDA zone info for Michigan City.

Planting Calendar for Shallots

Frost tolerance for shallots:	Tolerant of a very small amount of frost.
When to plant:	Up to 3 weeks before last frost.

Shallots can survive in mild cold which means that you can plant them just a tiny bit earlier in the year than plants that are more sensitive to the cold.

The earliest that you can plant shallots in Michigan City is March. However, you really should wait until April if you don't want to take any chances.

The last month that you can plant shallots and expect a good harvest is probably August. If you wait any later than that and your shallots may not have a chance to really do well. Starting your shallots indoors is a great way to get them started a little bit earlier.

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost has passed is on April 15 in Michigan City. You can expect an average low temperature of -10°F in the coldest months of winter.

Keep in mind that USDA zone info for Michigan City is just an average and the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Half of the time in Michigan City there is a last frost after April 15 so always be ready to cover your shallots in the event of one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Michigan City

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 Michigan City

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