The USDA Zone info is a great tool for gardeners to help us determine 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.

The USDA zone info for Smithville should be reviewed to estimate when it's a good idea to plant chinese cabbage.

Planting Calendar for Chinese cabbage

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

Since chinese cabbage do well in moderate cold you can plant them a little bit earlier in the year than more sensitive plants.

The earliest that you can plant chinese cabbage in Smithville 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 chinese cabbage and expect a good harvest is probably September. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your chinese cabbage may not have a chance to really do well. Starting your chinese cabbage indoors is a great way to get them started a couple of weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

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

Remember that the actual date of last frost is an average because it is based on the USDA zone info for Smithville and it will vary from year to year. Half of the time in Smithville there is a last frost after March 15 so make sure that you are prepared to cover your chinese cabbage if you have one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Smithville

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 Smithville

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