The USDA Zone info is a great tool for gardeners to help us figure out your gardening schedule. The most important data that the zone info tells us is average last frost and the lowest expected temperature for your area.

A way of making a decision about when it's a good idea to plant chives is to use the USDA zone info for Hopkins.

Planting Calendar for Chives

Frost tolerance for chives:	Very tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	Up to 7 weeks before last frost.

Chives are very cold tolerant which means that you can get them planted much earlier than other frost tender plants.

The earliest that you can plant chives in Hopkins 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 chives and expect a good harvest is probably August. Any later than that and your chives may not have a chance to really do well. If you are starting your chives indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a couple of weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

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

Just be sure to remember that USDA zone info for Hopkins may not be accurate from year to year and the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Since half of the time in Hopkins last frost occurs after May 15 be ready to protect your chives if you have a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Hopkins

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 Hopkins

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