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.

In Poughkeepsie you can figure out when it's a good idea to plant kale by reviewing the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Kale

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

Kale do well in moderate cold which tells us that you can plant them earlier than more sensitive plants.

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

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is April 15 in Poughkeepsie. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of -10°F.

Since the USDA zone info for Poughkeepsie may not be accurate from year to year the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Since half of the time in Poughkeepsie last frost occurs after April 15 be ready to cover your kale if you have a surprise 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.