One of the first steps you take when you are estimating your gardening schedule is find your USDA Zone info. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

The first opportunity to plant watermelon in Cape Girardeau should be estimated by reviewing the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Watermelon

Frost tolerance for watermelon:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After the last frost.

Since watermelon require warm weather you have to wait until after the last frost has passed before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant watermelon in Cape Girardeau 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 watermelon and expect a good harvest is probably August. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your watermelon may not have a chance to fully mature. You can get started a couple of weeks earlier by starting your watermelon indoors.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is April 15 in Cape Girardeau. In the coldest months of winter you can expect an average low temperature of -5°F.

Since the USDA zone info for Cape Girardeau may not be accurate from year to year the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Half of the time in Cape Girardeau you get a frost after April 15 so just be sure to be ready to cover your watermelon if you have a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Cape Girardeau

Here is the info for USDA Zone 6b.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	April 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	October 15
Lowest Expected Low	-5°F
Highest Expected Low	0°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is -5°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near 0°F.

Plants to Grow in Cape Girardeau

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Cape Girardeau.