One of the first steps you take when you are making a decision about 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.

One way of making a decision about when it's possible to plant basil is to consult the USDA zone info for Jefferson City.

Planting Calendar for Basil

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

Since basil require warm weather it is important to wait until after all chance of frost has passed before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant basil in Jefferson City 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 basil and expect a good harvest is probably August. If you wait any later than that and your basil may not have a chance to grow to maturity. Starting your basil indoors is a great way to get them started a little bit earlier.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is April 15 in Jefferson City. You should expect an average low temperature of -10°F in the coldest months of winter.

It's important to remember that USDA zone info for Jefferson City is not always accurate and the actual date of last frost is different every year. Half of the time in Jefferson City you get surprised by a frost after April 15 so be sure to be ready to protect your basil in the event of a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Jefferson City

Here is the info for USDA Zone 6a.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	April 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	October 15
Lowest Expected Low	-10°F
Highest Expected Low	-5°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is -10°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near -5°F.

Plants to Grow in Jefferson City

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Jefferson City.