Before planting it is a good idea to find your USDA Zone info to figure out your garden schedule. The most important data that the zone info tells us is average last frost and the lowest expected temperature for your area.

You can determine when you can plant potatos in Benton Harbor by checking out the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Potatos

Frost tolerance for potatos:	Very tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	Up to 7 weeks before last frost.

Since potatos are one of those plants that can tolerate quite a bit of cold weather you can plant them earlier in the year than other plants that might not handle the cold.

The earliest that you can plant potatos in Benton Harbor 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 potatos and expect a good harvest is probably September. Any later than that and your potatos may not have a chance to really do well. Starting your potatos indoors is a great way to get them started a few weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost when the weather gets warmer is on April 15 in Benton Harbor. In the coldest months of winter you can expect an average low temperature of -5°F.

Since the USDA zone info for Benton Harbor may not be accurate from year to year the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Since half of the time in Benton Harbor last frost occurs after April 15 be ready to protect your potatos if you have a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Benton Harbor

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 Benton Harbor

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