Before planting it is a good idea to find your USDA Zone info to figure out your garden schedule. The most important data that the zone info tells us is average last frost and the lowest expected temperature for your area.

The USDA zone info for Great Bend can be looked at to figure out when it's the best time to plant basil.

Planting Calendar for Basil

Frost tolerance for basil:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After the last frost has passed.

It's a bad idea to plant basil until after the last frost has passed because they require warm weather.

The earliest that you can plant basil in Great Bend 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 basil and expect a good harvest is probably August. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your basil may not have a chance to fully mature. You can get started a little bit earlier by starting your basil indoors.

Last Frost Date

In Great Bend the average date of last frost happens on April 15. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of -5°F.

Remember that the actual date of last frost may not be accurate from year to year because it is based on the USDA zone info for Great Bend and it is different every year. Since half of the time in Great Bend it frosts late in the year after April 15 be ready to cover your basil in the event of one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Great Bend

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 Great Bend

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