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When to Plant Scarlet Runner Beans in Swarthmore, PA

The USDA Zone info is a great tool for gardeners to help us figure out your gardening schedule. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

The first opportunity to plant scarlet runner beans in Swarthmore should be estimated by reviewing the USDA zone info.


Planting Calendar for Scarlet Runner Beans

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

Since scarlet runner beans are not cold tolerant it is important to wait until after the last frost before you can plant them.

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Legend 
A good time to plant scarlet runner beans
Possibly ok, but a risky time to plant scarlet runner beans
Probably not a good time to plant scarlet runner beans

The earliest that you can plant scarlet runner beans 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 scarlet runner beans and expect a good harvest is probably August. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your scarlet runner beans may not have a chance to fully mature. You can get started a few weeks earlier by starting your scarlet runner beans indoors.

Last Frost Date

In Swarthmore the average date of last frost happens on April 15. It might get as low as 0°F during the coldest months of winter.

It's important to remember that the actual date of last frost is just an average because it is based on the USDA zone info for Swarthmore and it can change quite a bit from year to year. Half of the time in Swarthmore it frosts late in the year after April 15 so make sure that you are prepared to cover your scarlet runner beans in the event of one of those late frosts.

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 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 Swarthmore

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