When to Plant Basil in Berlin, NJ

Before planting it is a good idea to find your USDA Zone info to determine your garden schedule. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

By using the USDA zone info for Berlin you will be able to determine when it's the best time to plant basil.


Planting Calendar for Basil

Frost tolerance for basil: Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant: After the last frost has passed.

You really shouldn't plant basil until after the last frost when the weather gets warmer because they are not cold tolerant.

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Legend 
A good time to plant basil
Possibly ok, but a risky time to plant basil
Probably not a good time to plant basil

The earliest that you can plant basil in Berlin 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 basil and expect a good harvest is probably August. If you wait any later than that and your basil may not have a chance to grow to maturity. You can get started a couple of weeks earlier by starting your basil indoors.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is April 15 in Berlin. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of 0°F.

Since the USDA zone info for Berlin is an average the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Since half of the time in Berlin it frosts late in the year after April 15 be ready to cover your basil if you have a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Berlin

Here is the info for USDA Zone 7a.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)April 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)October 15
Lowest Expected Low0°F
Highest Expected Low5°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is 0°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near 5°F.

Plants to Grow in Berlin

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