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.

One way of figuring out when to plant black pepper is to use the USDA zone info for Emporia.

Planting Calendar for Black pepper

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

You can not plant black pepper until after the last frost when the weather gets warmer because they require warm weather.

The earliest that you can plant black pepper in Emporia 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 black pepper and expect a good harvest is probably August. If you wait any later than that and your black pepper may not have a chance to fully mature. If you are starting your black pepper indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a couple of weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

On average all chance of frost has passed is on April 15 in Emporia. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of 5°F.

Remember that the actual date of last frost is just an average because it is based on the USDA zone info for Emporia and it is different every year. Half of the time in Emporia there is a last frost after April 15 so make sure that you are ready to cover your black pepper if you have a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Emporia

Here is the info for USDA Zone 7b.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	April 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	October 15
Lowest Expected Low	5°F
Highest Expected Low	10°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is 5°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near 10°F.

Plants to Grow in Emporia

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