When to Plant Scallions in Salem, MA

One of the best tools that you have as gardeners to help us figure out 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.

You should be able to determine when it's a good idea to plant scallions by using the USDA zone info for Salem.


Planting Calendar for Scallions

Frost tolerance for scallions: Tolerant of a very small amount of frost.
When to plant: Up to 3 weeks before last frost.

You can plant scallions slightly earlier in the year because they are barely cold tolerant.

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

The earliest that you can plant scallions in Salem is March. However, you really should wait until April if you don't want to take any chances.

The last month that you can plant scallions and expect a good harvest is probably August. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your scallions may not have a chance to grow to maturity. If you are starting your scallions indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a couple of weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

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

Since the USDA zone info for Salem is just an average the actual date of last frost is different every year. Since half of the time in Salem there is a last frost after April 15 be ready to cover your scallions if you have a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Salem

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 Low0°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 Salem

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