Before planting it is a good idea to find your USDA Zone info to estimate your garden schedule. 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 romanesco in Madison should be determined by looking at the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Romanesco

Frost tolerance for romanesco:	Tolerant of some frost.
When to plant:	Up to 5 weeks before last frost.

Romanesco tend to make it in some cold which tells us that you can plant them a little earlier in the year than other frost tender plants.

The earliest that you can plant romanesco in Madison is February. However, you really should wait until March if you don't want to take any chances.

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

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost has passed is on March 15 in Madison. It might get as low as 10°F during the coldest months of winter.

Just be sure to remember that the actual date of last frost is just an average because it is based on the USDA zone info for Madison and it is different every year. Half of the time in Madison it frosts late in the year after March 15 so always be ready to cover your romanesco if you have one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Madison

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 Madison

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