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 first opportunity to plant romaine lettuce in New Castle can be determined by using the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Romaine lettuce

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

Romaine lettuce tend to make it in quite a bit of cold which tells us that you can plant them a lot earlier in the year than more sensitive plants.

The earliest that you can plant romaine lettuce in New Castle 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 romaine lettuce and expect a good harvest is probably September. If you wait any later than that and your romaine lettuce may not have a chance to fully mature. You can get started a couple of weeks earlier by starting your romaine lettuce indoors.

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost is on April 15 in New Castle. It might get as low as -15°F during the coldest months of winter.

Remember that the actual date of last frost is not always accurate because it is based on the USDA zone info for New Castle and it changes from year to year. Half of the time in New Castle you get surprised by a frost after April 15 so be sure to be ready to cover your romaine lettuce in the event of one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for New Castle

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 New Castle

You may be interested in your other planting guides for New Castle.