One of the best tools that you have as gardeners to help us estimate your gardening schedule is the 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.

The USDA zone info for New Providence can be reffered to in order to determine when you can plant fennel.

Planting Calendar for Fennel

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

Fennel do ok in quite a bit of cold which tells us that you can plant them quite a bit earlier in the year than other plants that might not handle the cold.

The earliest that you can plant fennel in New Providence 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 fennel and expect a good harvest is probably September. If you wait any later than that and your fennel may not have a chance to fully mature. Starting your fennel indoors is a great way to get them started a little bit earlier.

Last Frost Date

In New Providence 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.

Always keep in mind that the actual date of last frost is not always accurate because it is based on the USDA zone info for New Providence and it will vary from year to year. Half of the time in New Providence you get a frost after April 15 so make sure that you are ready to cover your fennel if you have a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for New Providence

Here is the info for USDA Zone 6b.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	April 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	October 15
Lowest Expected Low	-5°F
Highest Expected Low	0°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 0°F.

Plants to Grow in New Providence

You may be interested in your other planting guides for New Providence.