One of the best tools that you have as gardeners to help us determine your gardening schedule is the 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 referring to the USDA zone info for Arkansas City it's possible to estimate when it's possible to plant melons.

Planting Calendar for Melons

Frost tolerance for melons:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After the last frost.

It's not a good idea to plant melons until after all chance of frost has passed because they require warm weather.

The earliest that you can plant melons in Arkansas City 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 melons and expect a good harvest is probably August. If you wait any later than that and your melons may not have a chance to fully mature. Starting your melons indoors is a great way to get them started a few weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost is on April 15 in Arkansas City. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of -5°F.

Just be sure to remember that the actual date of last frost is an average because it is based on the USDA zone info for Arkansas City and it is different every year. Half of the time in Arkansas City last frost occurs after April 15 so be sure to be ready to protect your melons if you have one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Arkansas City

Here is the info for USDA Zone 6b.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	April 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	October 15
Lowest Expected Low	-5°F
Highest Expected Low	0°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is -5°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near 0°F.

Plants to Grow in Arkansas City

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Arkansas City.