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 way of getting a good idea when it's possible to plant tarragon is to examine the USDA zone info for Portage.

Planting Calendar for Tarragon

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

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

The earliest that you can plant tarragon in Portage 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 tarragon and expect a good harvest is probably August. Any later than that and your tarragon may not have a chance to grow to maturity. You can get started a little bit earlier by starting your tarragon indoors.

Last Frost Date

In Portage the average date of last frost happens on April 15. In the coldest months of winter you can expect an average low temperature of -15°F.

Since the USDA zone info for Portage is not always accurate the actual date of last frost can change quite a bit 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 tarragon in the event of a surprise late frost.

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.