One of the best tools that you have as gardeners to help us figure out your gardening schedule is the USDA zone info. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

The best time to plant chard in Corning should be figured out by reviewing the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Chard

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

Chard do well in mild cold which tells us that you can plant them a bit earlier in the year than more sensitive plants.

The earliest that you can plant chard in Corning 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. Any later than that and 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 few weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost has passed is on April 15 in Corning. You can expect an average low temperature of -15°F in the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Corning is not always accurate the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Half of the time in Corning there is a last frost after April 15 so make sure that you are prepared to cover your chard in the event of a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Corning

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 Corning

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