One of the best tools that you have as gardeners to help us estimate 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.

The best time to plant pumpkins in Waterville should be figured out by reviewing the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Pumpkins

Frost tolerance for pumpkins:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After the last frost has passed.

Since pumpkins do not do well in cold weather you have to wait until after all chance of frost has passed before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant pumpkins in Waterville 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 pumpkins and expect a good harvest is probably August. Any later than that and your pumpkins may not have a chance to grow to maturity. If you are starting your pumpkins 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 Waterville. In the coldest months of winter you can expect an average low temperature of -10°F.

Since the USDA zone info for Waterville is just an average the actual date of last frost changes from year to year. Half of the time in Waterville it frosts late in the year after April 15 so make sure that you are prepared to protect your pumpkins in the event of one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Waterville

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 Waterville

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