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

One way of making a decision about when it's a good idea to plant stevia is to use the USDA zone info for Brainerd.

Planting Calendar for Stevia

Frost tolerance for stevia:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After the last frost.

Stevia do not do well in cold weather which means that you have to wait until it warms up after all chance of frost has passed before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant stevia in Brainerd 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 stevia and expect a good harvest is probably August. If you wait any later than that and your stevia may not have a chance to grow to maturity. Starting your stevia indoors is a great way to get them started a little bit earlier.

Last Frost Date

In Brainerd the average date of last frost happens on May 15. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of -35°F.

Just be sure to remember that USDA zone info for Brainerd may not be accurate from year to year and the actual date of last frost changes from year to year. Half of the time in Brainerd you get a frost after May 15 so make sure that you are ready to cover your stevia if you have a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Brainerd

Here is the info for USDA Zone 3b.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	May 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	September 15
Lowest Expected Low	-35°F
Highest Expected Low	-30°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is -35°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near -30°F.

Plants to Grow in Brainerd

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