One of the best tools that you have as gardeners to help us figure out 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.

A common way of figuring out when you can plant cilantro is to consult the USDA zone info for Louisville.

Planting Calendar for Cilantro

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

Cilantro tend to make it in some cold which tells us that you can plant them just a tiny bit earlier in the year than plants that are more sensitive to the cold.

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

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is March 15 in Louisville. It might get as low as 10°F during the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Louisville may not be accurate from year to year the actual date of last frost can change quite a bit from year to year. Half of the time in Louisville you get surprised by a frost after March 15 so make sure that you are ready to cover your cilantro in the event of a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Louisville

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 Louisville

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