One of the best tools that you have as gardeners to help us determine your gardening schedule is the 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 chance to plant chard in Winchester should be determined by using the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Chard

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

You can plant chard a little 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 chard in Winchester 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 chard and expect a good harvest is probably September. Any later than that and your chard may not have a chance to fully mature. Starting your chard indoors is a great way to get them started a couple of weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

In Winchester the average date of last frost happens on April 15. You should expect an average low temperature of -10°F in the coldest months of winter.

Just be sure to remember that USDA zone info for Winchester may not be accurate from year to year and the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Half of the time in Winchester you get a frost after April 15 so make sure that you are prepared to cover your chard in the event of one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Winchester

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 Winchester

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