One of the best tools that you have as gardeners to help us determine your gardening schedule is the USDA zone info. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

The USDA zone info for Hastings can be looked at to determine when you can plant okra.

Planting Calendar for Okra

Frost tolerance for okra:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After the last frost has passed.

Since okra require warm weather it's necessary to wait until after all chance of frost has passed before you can plant them.

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

Last Frost Date

In Hastings the average date of last frost happens on April 15. You should expect an average low temperature of -15°F in the coldest months of winter.

Keep in mind that the actual date of last frost is just an average because it is based on the USDA zone info for Hastings and it is different every year. Since half of the time in Hastings there is a last frost after April 15 be ready to protect your okra if you have a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Hastings

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 Hastings

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