One of the best tools that you have as gardeners to help us estimate 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 North Adams it's a good idea to estimate when to plant parsnip.

Planting Calendar for Parsnip

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

Since parsnip are one of those plants that can tolerate a little bit of cold weather you can plant them a little bit earlier in the year than other frost tender plants.

The earliest that you can plant parsnip in North Adams 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 parsnip and expect a good harvest is probably September. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your parsnip may not have a chance to fully mature. You can get started a couple of weeks earlier by starting your parsnip indoors.

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost when the weather gets warmer is on April 15 in North Adams. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of -15°F.

Since the USDA zone info for North Adams may not be accurate from year to year the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Half of the time in North Adams there is a last frost after April 15 so just be sure to be ready to protect your parsnip if you have a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for North Adams

Here is the info for USDA Zone 5b.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	April 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	October 15
Lowest Expected Low	-15°F
Highest Expected Low	-10°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is -15°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near -10°F.

Plants to Grow in North Adams

You may be interested in your other planting guides for North Adams.