One of the first steps you take when you are figuring out your gardening schedule is find your 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.

In Detroit you can estimate when it's the best time to plant broccoli by checking out the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Broccoli

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

You can plant broccoli a little earlier in the year because they do well in moderate cold.

The earliest that you can plant broccoli in Detroit 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 broccoli and expect a good harvest is probably September. If you wait any later than that and your broccoli may not have a chance to fully mature. If you are starting your broccoli indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a little bit earlier.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is April 15 in Detroit. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of -5°F.

Remember that USDA zone info for Detroit is not always accurate and the actual date of last frost can change quite a bit from year to year. Half of the time in Detroit you get a frost after April 15 so always be ready to cover your broccoli in the event of a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Detroit

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 Detroit

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