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.

The USDA zone info for Swarthmore can be looked at to figure out when you can plant cucumbers.

Planting Calendar for Cucumbers

Frost tolerance for cucumbers:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After the last frost when the weather gets warmer.

Since cucumbers do not do well in cold weather it's important to wait until after all chance of frost has passed before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant cucumbers in Swarthmore 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 cucumbers and expect a good harvest is probably August. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your cucumbers may not have a chance to fully mature. If you are starting your cucumbers indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a few weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

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

Since the USDA zone info for Swarthmore is just an average the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Since half of the time in Swarthmore last frost occurs after April 15 be ready to protect your cucumbers if you have a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Swarthmore

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 Low	0°F
Highest Expected Low	5°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 Swarthmore

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