One of the first steps you take when you are getting a good idea your gardening schedule is find your USDA Zone info. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

By reviewing the USDA zone info for Oak Ridge it's possible to figure out when it's the best time to plant chicory.

Planting Calendar for Chicory

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

Chicory do ok in a little bit of cold which means that you can plant them a bit earlier in the year than more sensitive plants.

The earliest that you can plant chicory in Oak Ridge 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 chicory and expect a good harvest is probably September. Any later than that and your chicory may not have a chance to really do well. If you are starting your chicory indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a couple of weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost is on April 15 in Oak Ridge. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of 5°F.

Keep in mind that USDA zone info for Oak Ridge is just an average and the actual date of last frost can change quite a bit from year to year. Since half of the time in Oak Ridge last frost occurs after April 15 be ready to cover your chicory in the event of one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Oak Ridge

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 Oak Ridge

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Oak Ridge.