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.

It's a good idea to figure out when it's the best time to plant stevia by using the USDA zone info for Rutherford.

Planting Calendar for Stevia

Frost tolerance for stevia:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After the last frost when the weather gets warmer.

Stevia do not do well in cold weather which tells us that it's necessary to wait until it warms up after the last frost has passed before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant stevia in Rutherford 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 stevia and expect a good harvest is probably August. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your stevia may not have a chance to really do well. You can get started a couple of weeks earlier by starting your stevia indoors.

Last Frost Date

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

It's important to remember that USDA zone info for Rutherford is not always accurate and the actual date of last frost can change quite a bit from year to year. Half of the time in Rutherford you get surprised by a frost after April 15 so always be ready to protect your stevia in the event of one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Rutherford

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 Low	0°F
Highest Expected Low	5°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 Rutherford

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