When to Plant Fennel in Darby, PA

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.

In Darby you can estimate when it's possible to plant fennel by reviewing the USDA zone info.


Planting Calendar for Fennel

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

Fennel can survive in a bit of cold which tells us that you can plant them much earlier in the year than more sensitive plants.

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

The earliest that you can plant fennel in Darby 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 fennel and expect a good harvest is probably September. If you wait any later than that and your fennel may not have a chance to grow to maturity. Starting your fennel indoors is a great way to get them started a little bit earlier.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is April 15 in Darby. It might get as low as 0°F during the coldest months of winter.

Just be sure to remember that USDA zone info for Darby is not always accurate and the actual date of last frost can change quite a bit from year to year. Since half of the time in Darby you get a frost after April 15 be ready to protect your fennel in the event of one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Darby

Here is the info for USDA Zone 7a.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)April 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)October 15
Lowest Expected Low0°F
Highest Expected Low5°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is 0°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near 5°F.

Plants to Grow in Darby

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