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.

By using the USDA zone info for Poughkeepsie you should be able to estimate when it's the best time to plant flowering kale.

Planting Calendar for Flowering Kale

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

Since flowering kale do well in moderate cold you can plant them just a bit earlier in the year than plants that are more sensitive to the cold.

The earliest that you can plant flowering kale in Poughkeepsie 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 flowering kale and expect a good harvest is probably September. Any later than that and your flowering kale may not have a chance to fully mature. Starting your flowering kale indoors is a great way to get them started a little bit earlier.

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost when the weather gets warmer is on April 15 in Poughkeepsie. It might get as low as -10°F during the coldest months of winter.

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

USDA Zone Info for Poughkeepsie

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 Poughkeepsie

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