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

One way of making a decision about when it's the best time to plant okra is to check out the USDA zone info for Desoto.

Planting Calendar for Okra

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

Since okra require warm weather it is necessary to wait until after the last frost when the weather gets warmer before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant okra in Desoto 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 okra and expect a good harvest is probably August. If you wait any later than that and your okra may not have a chance to really do well. If you are starting your okra indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a few weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is March 15 in Desoto. In the coldest months of winter you can expect an average low temperature of 10°F.

It's important to remember that the actual date of last frost is not always accurate because it is based on the USDA zone info for Desoto and it can change quite a bit from year to year. Half of the time in Desoto last frost occurs after March 15 so make sure that you are ready to cover your okra if you have one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Desoto

Here is the info for USDA Zone 8a.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	March 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	November 15
Lowest Expected Low	10°F
Highest Expected Low	15°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is 10°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near 15°F.

Plants to Grow in Desoto

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