One of the best tools that you have as gardeners to help us determine 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 will be able to figure out when you can plant string beans by looking at the USDA zone info for Dowagiac.

Planting Calendar for String beans

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

Since string beans are not cold tolerant you have to wait until after the last frost has passed before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant string beans in Dowagiac 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 string beans and expect a good harvest is probably August. Any later than that and your string beans may not have a chance to grow to maturity. Starting your string beans indoors is a great way to get them started a few weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

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

Just be sure to remember that USDA zone info for Dowagiac may not be accurate from year to year and the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Half of the time in Dowagiac last frost occurs after April 15 so make sure that you are prepared to cover your string beans if you have a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Dowagiac

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 Dowagiac

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