The USDA Zone info is a great tool for gardeners to help us estimate your gardening schedule. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

In Portage you can estimate when it's possible to plant alternaria by reviewing the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Alternaria

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

Since alternaria do not do well in cold weather you have to wait until after the last frost when the weather gets warmer before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant alternaria in Portage 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 alternaria and expect a good harvest is probably August. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your alternaria may not have a chance to grow to maturity. Starting your alternaria indoors is a great way to get them started a few weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

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

Just be sure to remember that USDA zone info for Portage may not be accurate from year to year and the actual date of last frost changes from year to year. Half of the time in Portage you get a frost after April 15 so just be sure to be ready to protect your alternaria in the event of one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Portage

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 Portage

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