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.

The USDA zone info for Indianola should be read to determine when it's a good idea to plant shallots.

Planting Calendar for Shallots

Frost tolerance for shallots:	Tolerant of a very small amount of frost.
When to plant:	Up to 3 weeks before last frost.

Shallots do ok in moderate cold which means that you can plant them slightly earlier than other plants that might not handle the cold.

The earliest that you can plant shallots in Indianola 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 shallots and expect a good harvest is probably August. Any later than that and your shallots may not have a chance to fully mature. If you are starting your shallots indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a couple of weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

In Indianola the average date of last frost happens on March 15. In the coldest months of winter you can expect an average low temperature of 10°F.

Since the USDA zone info for Indianola is an average the actual date of last frost changes from year to year. Since half of the time in Indianola it frosts late in the year after March 15 be ready to protect your shallots in the event of one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Indianola

Here is the info for USDA Zone 8a.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	March 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	November 15
Lowest Expected Low	10°F
Highest Expected Low	15°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 15°F.

Plants to Grow in Indianola

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