One of the first steps you take when you are determining your gardening schedule is find your 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.

In Helena you can determine when it's the best time to plant field peas by looking at the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Field Peas

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

Field Peas are moderately cold tolerant which means that you can plant them a little bit earlier than more sensitive plants.

The earliest that you can plant field peas in Helena 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 field peas and expect a good harvest is probably August. If you wait any later than that and your field peas may not have a chance to fully mature. Starting your field peas indoors is a great way to get them started a little bit earlier.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is May 15 in Helena. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of -25°F.

Just be sure to remember that USDA zone info for Helena is not always accurate and the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Half of the time in Helena you get a frost after May 15 so just be sure to be ready to cover your field peas if you have a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Helena

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 Helena

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