One of the best tools that you have as gardeners to help us determine your gardening schedule is the USDA zone info. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

You should be able to estimate when it's a good idea to plant kale by checking out the USDA zone info for Apex.

Planting Calendar for Kale

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

Since kale are moderately cold tolerant you can plant them a bit earlier in the year than more sensitive plants.

The earliest that you can plant kale in Apex 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 kale and expect a good harvest is probably September. Any later than that and your kale may not have a chance to fully mature. You can get started a little bit earlier by starting your kale indoors.

Last Frost Date

In Apex the average date of last frost happens on April 15. In the coldest months of winter you can expect an average low temperature of 5°F.

Remember that the actual date of last frost may not be accurate from year to year because it is based on the USDA zone info for Apex and it will vary from year to year. Since half of the time in Apex you get a frost after April 15 be ready to protect your kale in the event of one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Apex

Here is the info for USDA Zone 7b.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	April 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	October 15
Lowest Expected Low	5°F
Highest Expected Low	10°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is 5°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near 10°F.

Plants to Grow in Apex

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