The USDA Zone info is a great tool for gardeners to help us determine 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.

One way of estimating when it's possible to plant turnips is to use the USDA zone info for Virginia.

Planting Calendar for Turnips

Frost tolerance for turnips:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After the last frost when the weather gets warmer.

Turnips are not cold tolerant which tells us that you need to wait until it warms up after all chance of frost has passed before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant turnips in Virginia is May. However, you really should wait until June if you don't want to take any chances.

The last month that you can plant turnips and expect a good harvest is probably August. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your turnips may not have a chance to fully mature. If you are starting your turnips indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a few weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost has passed is on May 15 in Virginia. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of -35°F.

Remember that the actual date of last frost may not be accurate from year to year because it is based on the USDA zone info for Virginia and it changes from year to year. Since half of the time in Virginia you get a frost after May 15 be ready to protect your turnips in the event of a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Virginia

Here is the info for USDA Zone 3b.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	May 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	September 15
Lowest Expected Low	-35°F
Highest Expected Low	-30°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is -35°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near -30°F.

Plants to Grow in Virginia

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