When to Plant Parsnip in Harrisburg, PA

The USDA Zone info is a great tool for gardeners to help us estimate your gardening schedule. The most important data that the zone info tells us is average last frost and the lowest expected temperature for your area.

The best time to plant parsnip in Harrisburg should be estimated by looking at the USDA zone info.


Planting Calendar for Parsnip

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

You can plant parsnip a bit earlier in the year because they are moderately cold tolerant.

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

The earliest that you can plant parsnip in Harrisburg 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 parsnip and expect a good harvest is probably September. If you wait any later than that and your parsnip may not have a chance to grow to maturity. You can get started a couple of weeks earlier by starting your parsnip indoors.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is April 15 in Harrisburg. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of 0°F.

It's important to remember that USDA zone info for Harrisburg is not always accurate and the actual date of last frost can change quite a bit from year to year. Half of the time in Harrisburg it frosts late in the year after April 15 so make sure that you are prepared to cover your parsnip if you have one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Harrisburg

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 Harrisburg

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