One of the first steps you take when you are estimating your gardening schedule is find your 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.

One way of figuring out when to plant chard is to consult the USDA zone info for Babylon.

Planting Calendar for Chard

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

Chard are moderately cold tolerant which tells us that you can get them planted earlier than more sensitive plants.

The earliest that you can plant chard in Babylon 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 chard and expect a good harvest is probably September. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your chard may not have a chance to fully mature. If you are starting your chard indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a couple of weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

On average all chance of frost has passed is on April 15 in Babylon. You can expect an average low temperature of 0°F in the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Babylon may not be accurate from year to year the actual date of last frost is different every year. Since half of the time in Babylon last frost occurs after April 15 be ready to cover your chard in the event of a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Babylon

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 Babylon

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