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 making a decision about when to plant chard is to consult the USDA zone info for Hutto.

Planting Calendar for Chard

Frost tolerance for chard:	Tolerant of some frost.
When to plant:	Up to 5 weeks before last frost.

Chard do well in some cold which tells us that you can plant them a little bit earlier in the year than other frost tender plants.

The earliest that you can plant chard in Hutto 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 chard and expect a good harvest is probably September. If you wait any later than that and your chard may not have a chance to really do well. Starting your chard indoors is a great way to get them started a couple of weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost when the weather gets warmer is on March 15 in Hutto. You should expect an average low temperature of 15°F in the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Hutto is an average the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Half of the time in Hutto you get a frost after March 15 so make sure that you are ready to cover your chard in the event of one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Hutto

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 Hutto

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