One of the best tools that you have as gardeners to help us determine 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.

By reviewing the USDA zone info for Summit it's a good idea to determine when to plant flowering kale.

Planting Calendar for Flowering Kale

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

Flowering Kale do well in moderate cold which tells us that you can start planting them earlier than other plants that might not handle the cold.

The earliest that you can plant flowering kale in Summit 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 flowering kale and expect a good harvest is probably September. Any later than that and your flowering kale may not have a chance to really do well. Starting your flowering kale indoors is a great way to get them started a couple of weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is April 15 in Summit. In the coldest months of winter you can expect an average low temperature of -5°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 Summit and it changes from year to year. Half of the time in Summit there is a last frost after April 15 so make sure that you are prepared to cover your flowering kale in the event of a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Summit

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 Summit

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