One of the first steps you take when you are determining your gardening schedule is find your 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.

You can determine when it's the best time to plant stocks in Hastings by using the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Stocks

Frost tolerance for stocks:	Tolerant of a very small amount of frost.
When to plant:	Up to 3 weeks before last frost.

Stocks can survive in a tiny bit of cold which tells us that you can plant them slightly earlier in the year than other frost tender plants.

The earliest that you can plant stocks 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 stocks and expect a good harvest is probably August. If you wait any later than that and your stocks may not have a chance to really do well. You can get started a couple of weeks earlier by starting your stocks indoors.

Last Frost Date

In Hastings the average date of last frost happens on May 15. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of -25°F.

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

USDA Zone Info for Hastings

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 Hastings

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