One of the best tools that you have as gardeners to help us figure out 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.

By looking at the USDA zone info for Austin it's a good idea to estimate when it's the best time to plant scarlet runner beans.

Planting Calendar for Scarlet Runner Beans

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

Since scarlet runner beans require warm weather you must wait until after the last frost has passed before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant scarlet runner beans in Austin is May. However, you really should wait until June if you don't want to take any chances.

The last month that you can plant scarlet runner beans and expect a good harvest is probably August. Any later than that and your scarlet runner beans may not have a chance to fully mature. Starting your scarlet runner beans indoors is a great way to get them started a couple of weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is May 15 in Austin. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of -25°F.

Just be sure to remember that USDA zone info for Austin is just an average and the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Half of the time in Austin last frost occurs after May 15 so make sure that you are prepared to protect your scarlet runner beans in the event of a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Austin

Here is the info for USDA Zone 4b.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	May 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	September 15
Lowest Expected Low	-25°F
Highest Expected Low	-20°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is -25°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near -20°F.

Plants to Grow in Austin

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