One of the first steps you take when you are getting a good idea your gardening schedule is find your USDA Zone info. 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 decorative kale in Valparaiso can be determined by using the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Decorative Kale

Frost tolerance for decorative kale:	Tolerant of some frost.
When to plant:	Up to 5 weeks before last frost.

You can plant decorative kale just a bit earlier in the year because they are one of those plants that can tolerate a little bit of cold weather.

The earliest that you can plant decorative kale in Valparaiso 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 decorative kale and expect a good harvest is probably September. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your decorative kale may not have a chance to fully mature. Starting your decorative kale indoors is a great way to get them started a little bit earlier.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is April 15 in Valparaiso. You can expect an average low temperature of -15°F in the coldest months of winter.

Remember that USDA zone info for Valparaiso is an average and the actual date of last frost can change quite a bit from year to year. Since half of the time in Valparaiso you get surprised by a frost after April 15 be ready to protect your decorative kale if you have a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Valparaiso

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 Valparaiso

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