One of the first steps you take when you are figuring out 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 looking at the USDA zone info for Tarboro you will be able to estimate when you can plant tomatos.

Planting Calendar for Tomatos

Frost tolerance for tomatos:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After the last frost when the weather gets warmer.

You really shouldn't plant tomatos until after all chance of frost has passed because they require warm weather.

The earliest that you can plant tomatos in Tarboro 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 tomatos and expect a good harvest is probably August. If you wait any later than that and your tomatos may not have a chance to grow to maturity. If you are starting your tomatos indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a little bit earlier.

Last Frost Date

In Tarboro 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.

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 Tarboro and it will vary from year to year. Since half of the time in Tarboro it frosts late in the year after April 15 be ready to cover your tomatos if you have a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Tarboro

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 Tarboro

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