When to Plant Pumpkins in Plainfield, NJ

One of the first steps you take when you are determining 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.

The USDA zone info for Plainfield should be read to figure out when you can plant pumpkins.


Planting Calendar for Pumpkins

Frost tolerance for pumpkins: Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant: After the last frost.

Since pumpkins require warm weather it is necessary to wait until after the last frost has passed before you can plant them.

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

The earliest that you can plant pumpkins in Plainfield 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 pumpkins and expect a good harvest is probably August. If you wait any later than that and your pumpkins may not have a chance to really do well. You can get started a little bit earlier by starting your pumpkins indoors.

Last Frost Date

In Plainfield the average date of last frost happens on April 15. In the coldest months of winter you can expect an average low temperature of 0°F.

It's important to remember that the actual date of last frost is an average because it is based on the USDA zone info for Plainfield and it can change quite a bit from year to year. Since half of the time in Plainfield you get surprised by a frost after April 15 be ready to cover your pumpkins in the event of a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Plainfield

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 Plainfield

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