One of the best tools that you have as gardeners to help us estimate your gardening schedule is the 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.

The earliest that you can plant squash in Hope Mills can be figured out by checking out the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Squash

Frost tolerance for squash:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After the last frost has passed.

Squash are not cold tolerant which tells us that it is necessary to wait until it warms up after the last frost before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant squash in Hope Mills is April. However, you really should wait until May if you don't want to take any chances.

The last month that you can plant squash and expect a good harvest is probably August. Any later than that and your squash may not have a chance to grow to maturity. If you are starting your squash indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a few weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost has passed is on March 15 in Hope Mills. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of 10°F.

It's important to remember that the actual date of last frost is just an average because it is based on the USDA zone info for Hope Mills and it changes from year to year. Since half of the time in Hope Mills you get a frost after March 15 be ready to protect your squash in the event of a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Hope Mills

Here is the info for USDA Zone 8a.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	March 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	November 15
Lowest Expected Low	10°F
Highest Expected Low	15°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is 10°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near 15°F.

Plants to Grow in Hope Mills

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Hope Mills.