Before planting it is a good idea to find your USDA Zone info to determine your garden schedule. The most important data that the zone info tells us is average last frost and the lowest expected temperature for your area.

A common way of getting a good idea when it's the best time to plant bok choi is to examine the USDA zone info for Rochester.

Planting Calendar for Bok Choi

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

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

The earliest that you can plant bok choi in Rochester 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 bok choi and expect a good harvest is probably September. If you wait any later than that and your bok choi may not have a chance to really do well. Starting your bok choi indoors is a great way to get them started a couple of weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost has passed is on April 15 in Rochester. You should expect an average low temperature of -15°F in the coldest months of winter.

Remember that USDA zone info for Rochester may not be accurate from year to year and the actual date of last frost can change quite a bit from year to year. Half of the time in Rochester you get a frost after April 15 so make sure that you are ready to cover your bok choi if you have a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Rochester

Here is the info for USDA Zone 5b.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	April 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	October 15
Lowest Expected Low	-15°F
Highest Expected Low	-10°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is -15°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near -10°F.

Plants to Grow in Rochester

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