One of the first steps you take when you are estimating your gardening schedule is find your 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.

A way of making a decision about when you can plant artichokes is to consult the USDA zone info for Bellevue.

Planting Calendar for Artichokes

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

Artichokes are moderately cold tolerant which means that you can plant them a little bit earlier than other frost tender plants.

The earliest that you can plant artichokes in Bellevue 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 artichokes and expect a good harvest is probably September. If you wait any later than that and your artichokes may not have a chance to really do well. Starting your artichokes indoors is a great way to get them started a couple of weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost is on April 15 in Bellevue. It might get as low as -5°F during the coldest months of winter.

It's important to remember that the actual date of last frost is just an average because it is based on the USDA zone info for Bellevue and it can change quite a bit from year to year. Half of the time in Bellevue you get a frost after April 15 so make sure that you are ready to protect your artichokes in the event of a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Bellevue

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 Bellevue

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