When to Plant Onions in Nanticoke, PA

The USDA Zone info is a great tool for gardeners to help us figure out 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.

By looking at the USDA zone info for Nanticoke it's possible to estimate when it's possible to plant onions.


Planting Calendar for Onions

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

Onions can survive in cold weather which means that you can plant them a lot earlier in the year than more sensitive plants.

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

The earliest that you can plant onions in Nanticoke 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 onions and expect a good harvest is probably September. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your onions may not have a chance to really do well. If you are starting your onions indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a couple of weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost is on April 15 in Nanticoke. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of -10°F.

Just be sure to remember that the actual date of last frost is just an average because it is based on the USDA zone info for Nanticoke and it changes from year to year. Since half of the time in Nanticoke last frost occurs after April 15 be ready to cover your onions in the event of one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Nanticoke

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 Nanticoke

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