One of the first steps you take when you are getting a good idea your gardening schedule is find your USDA Zone info. The most important data that the zone info tells us is average last frost and the lowest expected temperature for your area.

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

Planting Calendar for Parsnip

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

You can plant parsnip a little earlier in the year because they are one of those plants that can tolerate a little bit of cold weather.

The earliest that you can plant parsnip in Palestine 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 parsnip and expect a good harvest is probably September. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your parsnip may not have a chance to grow to maturity. If you are starting your parsnip indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a little bit earlier.

Last Frost Date

In Palestine the average date of last frost happens on March 15. You should expect an average low temperature of 15°F in the coldest months of winter.

Remember that USDA zone info for Palestine may not be accurate from year to year and the actual date of last frost is different every year. Since half of the time in Palestine last frost occurs after March 15 be ready to protect your parsnip in the event of a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Palestine

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 Palestine

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