When to Plant Carrots in Cottage Grove, MN

Before planting it is a good idea to find your USDA Zone info to figure out your garden schedule. The most important data that the zone info tells us is average last frost and the lowest expected temperature for your area.

By looking at the USDA zone info for Cottage Grove it's possible to figure out when it's possible to plant carrots.


Planting Calendar for Carrots

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

Since carrots are moderately cold tolerant you can plant them just a bit earlier in the year than plants that are more sensitive to the cold.

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Legend 
A good time to plant carrots
Possibly ok, but a risky time to plant carrots
Probably not a good time to plant carrots

The earliest that you can plant carrots in Cottage Grove is March. However, you really should wait until April if you don't want to take any chances.

The last month that you can plant carrots and expect a good harvest is probably August. If you wait any later than that and your carrots may not have a chance to fully mature. Starting your carrots 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 Cottage Grove. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of -25°F.

Since the USDA zone info for Cottage Grove may not be accurate from year to year the actual date of last frost is different every year. Since half of the time in Cottage Grove you get surprised by a frost after May 15 be ready to protect your carrots if you have a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Cottage Grove

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 Cottage Grove

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Cottage Grove.