When to Plant Watercress in Bethel Park, PA

Before planting it is a good idea to find your USDA Zone info to figure out your garden schedule. The most important data that the zone info tells us is average last frost and the lowest expected temperature for your area.

The earliest that you can plant watercress in Bethel Park should be estimated by referring to the USDA zone info.


Planting Calendar for Watercress

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

Watercress tend to make it in mild cold which means that you can plant them just a tiny bit earlier in the year than other frost tender plants.

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Legend 
A good time to plant watercress
Possibly ok, but a risky time to plant watercress
Probably not a good time to plant watercress

The earliest that you can plant watercress in Bethel Park 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 watercress and expect a good harvest is probably August. If you wait any later than that and your watercress may not have a chance to fully mature. You can get started a couple of weeks earlier by starting your watercress indoors.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is April 15 in Bethel Park. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of -5°F.

Just be sure to remember that USDA zone info for Bethel Park is not always accurate and the actual date of last frost is different every year. Since half of the time in Bethel Park there is a last frost after April 15 be ready to cover your watercress in the event of a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Bethel Park

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 Low0°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 Bethel Park

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Bethel Park.