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

A way of figuring out when to plant artichokes is to refer to the USDA zone info for Mankato.

Planting Calendar for Artichokes

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

You can plant artichokes a bit earlier in the year because they do well in moderate cold.

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

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is May 15 in Mankato. It might get as low as -25°F during the coldest months of winter.

Just be sure to remember that USDA zone info for Mankato may not be accurate from year to year and the actual date of last frost is different every year. Since half of the time in Mankato it frosts late in the year after May 15 be ready to cover your artichokes if you have one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Mankato

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 Mankato

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