One of the first steps you take when you are estimating 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 Van Wert you can estimate when it's a good idea to plant decorative kale by looking at the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Decorative Kale

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

Decorative Kale do well in moderate cold which means that you can plant them a little bit earlier than other frost tender plants.

The earliest that you can plant decorative kale in Van Wert 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 decorative kale and expect a good harvest is probably September. Any later than that and your decorative kale may not have a chance to grow to maturity. You can get started a couple of weeks earlier by starting your decorative kale indoors.

Last Frost Date

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

Keep in mind that USDA zone info for Van Wert may not be accurate from year to year and the actual date of last frost is different every year. Half of the time in Van Wert there is a last frost after April 15 so make sure that you are prepared to cover your decorative kale in the event of one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Van Wert

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 Van Wert

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Van Wert.