When to Plant Gherkins in Butler, 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.

By referring to the USDA zone info for Butler it's a good idea to figure out when you can plant gherkins.


Planting Calendar for Gherkins

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

Since gherkins do not do well in cold weather it is necessary to wait until after all chance of frost has passed before you can plant them.

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

The earliest that you can plant gherkins in Butler 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 gherkins and expect a good harvest is probably August. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your gherkins may not have a chance to grow to maturity. Starting your gherkins indoors is a great way to get them started a few weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

In Butler the average date of last frost happens on April 15. You can expect an average low temperature of -10°F in the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Butler is an average the actual date of last frost changes from year to year. Half of the time in Butler you get surprised by a frost after April 15 so make sure that you are ready to protect your gherkins if you have a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Butler

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 Butler

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