Before planting it is a good idea to find your USDA Zone info to figure out your garden schedule. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

The USDA zone info for Stillwater can be read to estimate when to plant fennel.

Planting Calendar for Fennel

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

Since fennel are one of those plants that can tolerate quite a bit of cold weather you can plant them earlier in the year than more sensitive plants.

The earliest that you can plant fennel in Stillwater 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 fennel and expect a good harvest is probably August. Any later than that and your fennel may not have a chance to grow to maturity. If you are starting your fennel indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a little bit earlier.

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost is on May 15 in Stillwater. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of -25°F.

Keep in mind that USDA zone info for Stillwater may not be accurate from year to year and the actual date of last frost is different every year. Half of the time in Stillwater you get surprised by a frost after May 15 so make sure that you are prepared to cover your fennel in the event of a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Stillwater

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 Stillwater

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