When to Plant Potatos in Athens, TN

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.

A way of estimating when it's possible to plant potatos is to look at the USDA zone info for Athens.


Planting Calendar for Potatos

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

You can plant potatos a lot earlier in the year because they are very cold tolerant.

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

The earliest that you can plant potatos in Athens 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 potatos and expect a good harvest is probably September. Any later than that and your potatos may not have a chance to really do well. Starting your potatos indoors is a great way to get them started a few weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost has passed is on April 15 in Athens. It might get as low as 0°F during the coldest months of winter.

Keep in mind that USDA zone info for Athens 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 Athens it frosts late in the year after April 15 so make sure that you are prepared to protect your potatos in the event of one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Athens

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 Athens

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