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 to plant cantaloupes is to look at the USDA zone info for Childress.

Planting Calendar for Cantaloupes

Frost tolerance for cantaloupes:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After the last frost has passed.

Cantaloupes require warm weather which tells us that you really should wait until it warms up after the last frost before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant cantaloupes in Childress 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 cantaloupes and expect a good harvest is probably August. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your cantaloupes may not have a chance to grow to maturity. You can get started a couple of weeks earlier by starting your cantaloupes indoors.

Last Frost Date

In Childress the average date of last frost happens on April 15. It might get as low as 5°F during the coldest months of winter.

Keep in mind that the actual date of last frost is an average because it is based on the USDA zone info for Childress and it is different every year. Since half of the time in Childress you get surprised by a frost after April 15 be ready to cover your cantaloupes in the event of a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Childress

Here is the info for USDA Zone 7b.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	April 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	October 15
Lowest Expected Low	5°F
Highest Expected Low	10°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is 5°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near 10°F.

Plants to Grow in Childress

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