One of the first steps you take when you are getting a good idea 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.

A common way of estimating when it's a good idea to plant okra is to refer to the USDA zone info for Amsterdam.

Planting Calendar for Okra

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

Since okra do not do well in cold weather it is necessary to wait until after all chance of frost has passed before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant okra in Amsterdam 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 okra and expect a good harvest is probably August. Any later than that and your okra may not have a chance to really do well. Starting your okra indoors is a great way to get them started a few weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

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

Since the USDA zone info for Amsterdam is an average the actual date of last frost is different every year. Half of the time in Amsterdam it frosts late in the year after April 15 so just be sure to be ready to protect your okra in the event of a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Amsterdam

Here is the info for USDA Zone 5b.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	April 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	October 15
Lowest Expected Low	-15°F
Highest Expected Low	-10°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is -15°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near -10°F.

Plants to Grow in Amsterdam

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