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.

One way of figuring out when it's a good idea to plant scarlet runner beans is to check out the USDA zone info for Valley City.

Planting Calendar for Scarlet Runner Beans

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

Since scarlet runner beans require warm weather you need to wait until after the last frost when the weather gets warmer before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant scarlet runner beans in Valley City is May. However, you really should wait until June if you don't want to take any chances.

The last month that you can plant scarlet runner beans and expect a good harvest is probably August. If you wait any later than that and your scarlet runner beans may not have a chance to grow to maturity. Starting your scarlet runner beans 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. In the coldest months of winter you can expect an average low temperature of -30°F.

Since the USDA zone info for Valley City is an average the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Since half of the time in Valley City you get a frost after May 15 be ready to cover your scarlet runner beans in the event of a surprise 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.