One of the best tools that you have as gardeners to help us figure out 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.

In North Manchester you can figure out when to plant chives by referring to the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Chives

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

Chives do well in cold weather which tells us that you can plant them much earlier in the year than other frost tender plants.

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

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is April 15 in North Manchester. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of -15°F.

Since the USDA zone info for North Manchester is just an average the actual date of last frost can change quite a bit from year to year. Half of the time in North Manchester last frost occurs after April 15 so make sure that you are prepared to cover your chives if you have one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for North Manchester

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 North Manchester

You may be interested in your other planting guides for North Manchester.