When to Plant Oregano in Ithaca, NY

Before planting it is a good idea to find your USDA Zone info to determine your garden schedule. The most important data that the zone info tells us is average last frost and the lowest expected temperature for your area.

The USDA zone info for Ithaca can be looked at to figure out when to plant oregano.


Planting Calendar for Oregano

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

Oregano are one of those plants that can tolerate a little bit of cold weather which means that you can start planting them earlier than other frost tender plants.

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Legend 
A good time to plant oregano
Possibly ok, but a risky time to plant oregano
Probably not a good time to plant oregano

The earliest that you can plant oregano in Ithaca 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 oregano and expect a good harvest is probably September. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your oregano may not have a chance to fully mature. You can get started a few weeks earlier by starting your oregano indoors.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is April 15 in Ithaca. It might get as low as -10°F during the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Ithaca may not be accurate from year to year the actual date of last frost is different every year. Half of the time in Ithaca there is a last frost after April 15 so make sure that you are ready to cover your oregano if you have a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Ithaca

Here is the info for USDA Zone 6a.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)April 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)October 15
Lowest Expected Low-10°F
Highest Expected Low-5°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is -10°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near -5°F.

Plants to Grow in Ithaca

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