One of the first steps you take when you are making a decision about your gardening schedule is find your USDA Zone info. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

A common way of estimating when to plant perilla is to consult the USDA zone info for Pittsfield.

Planting Calendar for Perilla

Frost tolerance for perilla:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After all chance of frost has passed.

Perilla do not do well in cold weather which means that you really should wait until it warms up after the last frost has passed before you can plant them.

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

Last Frost Date

In Pittsfield the average date of last frost happens on April 15. It might get as low as -15°F during the coldest months of winter.

Remember that the actual date of last frost is not always accurate because it is based on the USDA zone info for Pittsfield and it is different every year. Since half of the time in Pittsfield there is a last frost after April 15 be ready to cover your perilla in the event of a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Pittsfield

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 Pittsfield

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