One of the first steps you take when you are estimating your gardening schedule is find your 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 first chance to plant strawberries in Ontario can be estimated by using the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Strawberries

Frost tolerance for strawberries:	Very tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	Up to 7 weeks before last frost.

Since strawberries do well in cold you can plant them earlier in the year than more sensitive plants.

The earliest that you can plant strawberries in Ontario 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 strawberries and expect a good harvest is probably September. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your strawberries may not have a chance to grow to maturity. If you are starting your strawberries indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a couple of weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

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

Always keep in mind that USDA zone info for Ontario is just an average and the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Half of the time in Ontario last frost occurs after April 15 so be sure to be ready to protect your strawberries if you have one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Ontario

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 Ontario

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