Before planting it is a good idea to find your USDA Zone info to determine your garden schedule. The most important data that the zone info tells us is average last frost and the lowest expected temperature for your area.

In Shelbyville you can estimate when it's possible to plant gherkins by referring to the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Gherkins

Frost tolerance for gherkins:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After all chance of frost has passed.

It's probably not a good idea to plant gherkins until after the last frost has passed because they do not do well in cold weather.

The earliest that you can plant gherkins in Shelbyville 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 gherkins and expect a good harvest is probably August. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your gherkins may not have a chance to fully mature. You can get started a couple of weeks earlier by starting your gherkins indoors.

Last Frost Date

On average all chance of frost has passed is on April 15 in Shelbyville. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of -10°F.

Since the USDA zone info for Shelbyville is just an average the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Half of the time in Shelbyville you get a frost after April 15 so be sure to be ready to cover your gherkins if you have a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Shelbyville

Here is the info for USDA Zone 6a.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	April 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	October 15
Lowest Expected Low	-10°F
Highest Expected Low	-5°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is -10°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near -5°F.

Plants to Grow in Shelbyville

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