One of the best tools that you have as gardeners to help us figure out 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 reviewing the USDA zone info for Mount Vernon it's a good idea to determine when it's possible to plant sweet peas.

Planting Calendar for Sweet Peas

Frost tolerance for sweet peas:	Tolerant of a very small amount of frost.
When to plant:	Up to 3 weeks before last frost.

Sweet Peas do well in mild cold which means that you can plant them just a tiny bit earlier in the year than other frost tender plants.

The earliest that you can plant sweet peas in Mount Vernon is March. However, you really should wait until April if you don't want to take any chances.

The last month that you can plant sweet peas and expect a good harvest is probably August. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your sweet peas may not have a chance to really do well. Starting your sweet peas indoors is a great way to get them started a few weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

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

Since the USDA zone info for Mount Vernon is an average the actual date of last frost can change quite a bit from year to year. Since half of the time in Mount Vernon last frost occurs after April 15 be ready to cover your sweet peas if you have a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Mount Vernon

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 Mount Vernon

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Mount Vernon.