Before planting it is a good idea to find your USDA Zone info to determine your garden schedule. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

The first opportunity to plant melons in Rensselaer can be figured out by reviewing the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Melons

Frost tolerance for melons:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After the last frost.

You really shouldn't plant melons until after the last frost has passed because they are not cold tolerant.

The earliest that you can plant melons in Rensselaer 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 melons and expect a good harvest is probably August. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your melons may not have a chance to fully mature. Starting your melons 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 Rensselaer. In the coldest months of winter you can expect an average low temperature of -15°F.

Since the USDA zone info for Rensselaer is just an average the actual date of last frost can change quite a bit from year to year. Half of the time in Rensselaer you get surprised by a frost after April 15 so always be ready to cover your melons if you have one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Rensselaer

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 Rensselaer

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