One of the first steps you take when you are determining your gardening schedule is find your USDA Zone info. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

You will be able to estimate when you can plant watermelon by using the USDA zone info for Desoto.

Planting Calendar for Watermelon

Frost tolerance for watermelon:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After all chance of frost has passed.

Watermelon require warm weather which tells us that you have 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 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 watermelon and expect a good harvest is probably August. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your watermelon may not have a chance to fully mature. Starting your watermelon indoors is a great way to get them started a little bit earlier.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is March 15 in Desoto. It might get as low as 10°F during the coldest months of winter.

It's important to remember that USDA zone info for Desoto may not be accurate from year to year and the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Half of the time in Desoto there is a last frost after March 15 so make sure that you are ready to cover your watermelon if you have a late frost.

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.