One of the best tools that you have as gardeners to help us estimate your gardening schedule is the USDA zone info. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

The USDA zone info for Center can be used to figure out when to plant eggplants.

Planting Calendar for Eggplants

Frost tolerance for eggplants:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After the last frost.

It's not a good idea to plant eggplants until after all chance of frost has passed because they require warm weather.

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

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is March 15 in Center. In the coldest months of winter you can expect an average low temperature of 15°F.

It's important to remember that the actual date of last frost may not be accurate from year to year because it is based on the USDA zone info for Center and it will vary from year to year. Since half of the time in Center you get a frost after March 15 be ready to cover your eggplants if you have a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Center

Here is the info for USDA Zone 8b.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	March 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	November 15
Lowest Expected Low	15°F
Highest Expected Low	20°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is 15°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near 20°F.

Plants to Grow in Center

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