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 nigella in Valparaiso should be figured out by referring to the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Nigella

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

Nigella are very cold tolerant which means that you can start planting them much earlier than other frost tender plants.

The earliest that you can plant nigella 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 nigella and expect a good harvest is probably September. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your nigella may not have a chance to really do well. If you are starting your nigella indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a couple of weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

In Valparaiso the average date of last frost happens on April 15. You should expect an average low temperature of -15°F in the coldest months of winter.

Keep in mind that USDA zone info for Valparaiso is just an average and the actual date of last frost changes from year to year. Half of the time in Valparaiso you get surprised by a frost after April 15 so be sure to be ready to cover your nigella in the event of 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.