One of the first steps you take when you are getting a good idea your gardening schedule is find your USDA Zone info. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

In Northwood you can figure out when you can plant tomatos by referring to the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Tomatos

Frost tolerance for tomatos:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After the last frost.

You really shouldn't plant tomatos until after the last frost because they require warm weather.

The earliest that you can plant tomatos in Northwood is April. However, you really should wait until May if you don't want to take any chances.

The last month that you can plant tomatos and expect a good harvest is probably August. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your tomatos may not have a chance to really do well. If you are starting your tomatos indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a little bit earlier.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is April 15 in Northwood. It might get as low as -5°F during the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Northwood may not be accurate from year to year the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Half of the time in Northwood it frosts late in the year after April 15 so be sure to be ready to cover your tomatos if you have a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Northwood

Here is the info for USDA Zone 6b.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	April 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	October 15
Lowest Expected Low	-5°F
Highest Expected Low	0°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is -5°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near 0°F.

Plants to Grow in Northwood

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