When to Plant Decorative Kale in Benton, KY

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 USDA zone info for Benton can be used to estimate when it's possible to plant decorative kale.


Planting Calendar for Decorative Kale

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

Since decorative kale are moderately cold tolerant you can plant them just a bit earlier in the year than more sensitive plants.

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Legend 
A good time to plant decorative kale
Possibly ok, but a risky time to plant decorative kale
Probably not a good time to plant decorative kale

The earliest that you can plant decorative kale in Benton 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 decorative kale and expect a good harvest is probably September. If you wait any later than that and your decorative kale may not have a chance to fully mature. Starting your decorative kale indoors is a great way to get them started a little bit earlier.

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost is on April 15 in Benton. You should expect an average low temperature of 0°F in the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Benton may not be accurate from year to year the actual date of last frost is different every year. Half of the time in Benton it frosts late in the year after April 15 so make sure that you are ready to protect your decorative kale if you have a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Benton

Here is the info for USDA Zone 7a.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)April 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)October 15
Lowest Expected Low0°F
Highest Expected Low5°F

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

Plants to Grow in Benton

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