One of the best tools that you have as gardeners to help us estimate 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.

The USDA zone info for Jacksonville should be used to figure out when it's a good idea to plant turnips.

Planting Calendar for Turnips

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

Since turnips require warm weather you must wait until after all chance of frost has passed before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant turnips in Jacksonville 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 turnips and expect a good harvest is probably August. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your turnips may not have a chance to grow to maturity. If you are starting your turnips indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a little bit earlier.

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost has passed is on March 15 in Jacksonville. It might get as low as 10°F during the coldest months of winter.

Just be sure to remember that the actual date of last frost is an average because it is based on the USDA zone info for Jacksonville and it is different every year. Half of the time in Jacksonville last frost occurs after March 15 so just be sure to be ready to cover your turnips if you have a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Jacksonville

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 Jacksonville

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