One of the first steps you take when you are making a decision about your gardening schedule is find your USDA Zone info. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

By referring to the USDA zone info for Three Rivers you will be able to figure out when it's the best time to plant rhubarb.

Planting Calendar for Rhubarb

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

Since rhubarb do well in moderate cold you can plant them a little earlier in the year than plants that are more sensitive to the cold.

The earliest that you can plant rhubarb in Three Rivers 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 rhubarb and expect a good harvest is probably September. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your rhubarb may not have a chance to fully mature. You can get started a few weeks earlier by starting your rhubarb indoors.

Last Frost Date

In Three Rivers the average date of last frost happens on April 15. It might get as low as -15°F during the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Three Rivers may not be accurate from year to year the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Half of the time in Three Rivers you get surprised by a frost after April 15 so always be ready to cover your rhubarb in the event of a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Three Rivers

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 Three Rivers

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Three Rivers.