Before planting it is a good idea to find your USDA Zone info to figure out your garden schedule. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

In Mitchell you can estimate when you can plant watermelon by looking at the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Watermelon

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

Watermelon do not do well in cold weather which means that it's important to wait until it warms up after the last frost has passed before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant watermelon in Mitchell is May. However, you really should wait until June if you don't want to take any chances.

The last month that you can plant watermelon and expect a good harvest is probably August. Any later than that and your watermelon may not have a chance to grow to maturity. Starting your watermelon indoors is a great way to get them started a little bit earlier.

Last Frost Date

In Mitchell the average date of last frost happens on May 15. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of -25°F.

Since the USDA zone info for Mitchell is an average the actual date of last frost changes from year to year. Since half of the time in Mitchell there is a last frost after May 15 be ready to cover your watermelon if you have a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Mitchell

Here is the info for USDA Zone 4b.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	May 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	September 15
Lowest Expected Low	-25°F
Highest Expected Low	-20°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is -25°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near -20°F.

Plants to Grow in Mitchell

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