One of the first steps you take when you are figuring out your gardening schedule is find your 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.

You should be able to estimate when you can plant chives by checking out the USDA zone info for Valley City.

Planting Calendar for Chives

Frost tolerance for chives:	Very tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	Up to 7 weeks before last frost.

You can plant chives quite a bit earlier in the year because they are one of those plants that can tolerate quite a bit of cold weather.

The earliest that you can plant chives in Valley City is March. However, you really should wait until April if you don't want to take any chances.

The last month that you can plant chives and expect a good harvest is probably August. Any later than that and your chives may not have a chance to grow to maturity. Starting your chives indoors is a great way to get them started a few weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

In Valley City the average date of last frost happens on May 15. You can expect an average low temperature of -30°F in the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Valley City may not be accurate from year to year the actual date of last frost is different every year. Half of the time in Valley City there is a last frost after May 15 so just be sure to be ready to protect your chives if you have a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Valley City

Here is the info for USDA Zone 4a.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	May 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	September 15
Lowest Expected Low	-30°F
Highest Expected Low	-25°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is -30°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near -25°F.

Plants to Grow in Valley City

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Valley City.