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.

You will be able to estimate when to plant rhubarb by reviewing the USDA zone info for New Paltz.

Planting Calendar for Rhubarb

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

Rhubarb do well in moderate cold which means that you can plant them a little bit earlier than more sensitive plants.

The earliest that you can plant rhubarb in New Paltz 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 rhubarb and expect a good harvest is probably September. If you wait any later than that and your rhubarb may not have a chance to fully mature. You can get started a few weeks earlier by starting your rhubarb indoors.

Last Frost Date

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

Since the USDA zone info for New Paltz is just an average the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Half of the time in New Paltz you get a frost after April 15 so make sure that you are prepared to protect your rhubarb in the event of a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for New Paltz

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 New Paltz

You may be interested in your other planting guides for New Paltz.