One of the first steps you take when you are making a decision about your gardening schedule is find your USDA Zone info. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

In Hanover you can estimate when it's the best time to plant kale by reviewing the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Kale

Frost tolerance for kale:	Tolerant of some frost.
When to plant:	Up to 5 weeks before last frost.

Kale do well in mild cold which means that you can plant them just a bit earlier in the year than other frost tender plants.

The earliest that you can plant kale in Hanover 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 kale and expect a good harvest is probably September. Any later than that and your kale may not have a chance to fully mature. If you are starting your kale 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 Hanover. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of -5°F.

Remember that the actual date of last frost is an average because it is based on the USDA zone info for Hanover and it is different every year. Half of the time in Hanover there is a last frost after April 15 so make sure that you are prepared to protect your kale in the event of a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Hanover

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 Hanover

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