Before planting it is a good idea to find your USDA Zone info to estimate your garden schedule. The most important data that the zone info tells us is average last frost and the lowest expected temperature for your area.

You should be able to determine when you can plant lettuce by reviewing the USDA zone info for Cary.

Planting Calendar for Lettuce

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

Lettuce do ok in a little bit of cold which means that you can plant them a little bit earlier in the year than other frost tender plants.

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

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is April 15 in Cary. You can expect an average low temperature of 5°F in the coldest months of winter.

Keep in mind that USDA zone info for Cary is not always accurate and the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Half of the time in Cary you get surprised by a frost after April 15 so be sure to be ready to cover your lettuce if you have one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Cary

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 Cary

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