One of the first steps you take when you are figuring out 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 earliest that you can plant fennel in Bozeman should be estimated by looking at the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Fennel

Frost tolerance for fennel:	Very tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	Up to 7 weeks before last frost.

Since fennel do well in cold you can plant them earlier in the year than more sensitive plants.

The earliest that you can plant fennel in Bozeman 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 fennel and expect a good harvest is probably August. Any later than that and your fennel may not have a chance to grow to maturity. Starting your fennel indoors is a great way to get them started a couple of weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is May 15 in Bozeman. It might get as low as -25°F during the coldest months of winter.

It's important to remember that the actual date of last frost is just an average because it is based on the USDA zone info for Bozeman and it will vary from year to year. Half of the time in Bozeman it frosts late in the year after May 15 so make sure that you are prepared to cover your fennel in the event of a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Bozeman

Here is the info for USDA Zone 4b.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	May 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	September 15
Lowest Expected Low	-25°F
Highest Expected Low	-20°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is -25°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near -20°F.

Plants to Grow in Bozeman

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