When to Plant Bell Peppers in Great Falls, MT

The USDA Zone info is a great tool for gardeners to help us figure out your gardening 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 bell peppers in Great Falls can be estimated by using the USDA zone info.


Planting Calendar for Bell Peppers

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

Since bell peppers require warm weather you really should wait until after the last frost before you can plant them.

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Legend 
A good time to plant bell peppers
Possibly ok, but a risky time to plant bell peppers
Probably not a good time to plant bell peppers

The earliest that you can plant bell peppers in Great Falls is May. However, you really should wait until June if you don't want to take any chances.

The last month that you can plant bell peppers and expect a good harvest is probably August. Any later than that and your bell peppers may not have a chance to grow to maturity. You can get started a few weeks earlier by starting your bell peppers indoors.

Last Frost Date

In Great Falls the average date of last frost happens on May 15. You should expect an average low temperature of -30°F in the coldest months of winter.

Keep in mind that USDA zone info for Great Falls is not always accurate and the actual date of last frost can change quite a bit from year to year. Half of the time in Great Falls there is a last frost after May 15 so make sure that you are ready to cover your bell peppers if you have a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Great Falls

Here is the info for USDA Zone 4a.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)May 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)September 15
Lowest Expected Low-30°F
Highest Expected Low-25°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is -30°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near -25°F.

Plants to Grow in Great Falls

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Great Falls.