One of the first steps you take when you are estimating your gardening schedule is find your 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.

By looking at the USDA zone info for South Bend it's a good idea to figure out when it's possible to plant red cabbage.

Planting Calendar for Red cabbage

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

You can plant red cabbage earlier in the year because they are one of those plants that can tolerate quite a bit of cold weather.

The earliest that you can plant red cabbage in South Bend 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 red cabbage and expect a good harvest is probably September. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your red cabbage may not have a chance to really do well. You can get started a couple of weeks earlier by starting your red cabbage indoors.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is April 15 in South Bend. It might get as low as -10°F during the coldest months of winter.

Remember that USDA zone info for South Bend is not always accurate and the actual date of last frost is different every year. Since half of the time in South Bend you get surprised by a frost after April 15 be ready to cover your red cabbage in the event of one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for South Bend

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 South Bend

You may be interested in your other planting guides for South Bend.