One of the first steps you take when you are estimating 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.

You can figure out when it's possible to plant runner beans in Laurel by referring to the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Runner beans

Frost tolerance for runner beans:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After all chance of frost has passed.

You really shouldn't plant runner beans until after the last frost has passed because they require warm weather.

The earliest that you can plant runner beans in Laurel 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 runner beans and expect a good harvest is probably August. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your runner beans may not have a chance to really do well. You can get started a few weeks earlier by starting your runner beans indoors.

Last Frost Date

In Laurel the average date of last frost happens on May 15. It might get as low as -25°F during the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Laurel is an average the actual date of last frost is different every year. Half of the time in Laurel you get surprised by a frost after May 15 so make sure that you are ready to cover your runner beans in the event of one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Laurel

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 Laurel

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