Before planting it is a good idea to find your USDA Zone info to figure out your garden schedule. The most important data that the zone info tells us is average last frost and the lowest expected temperature for your area.

A common way of getting a good idea when it's the best time to plant string beans is to refer to the USDA zone info for Smithfield.

Planting Calendar for String beans

Frost tolerance for string beans:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After the last frost.

You should not plant string beans until after all chance of frost has passed because they are not cold tolerant.

The earliest that you can plant string beans in Smithfield 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 string beans and expect a good harvest is probably August. Any later than that and your string beans may not have a chance to grow to maturity. You can get started a couple of weeks earlier by starting your string beans indoors.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is March 15 in Smithfield. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of 10°F.

Just be sure to remember that the actual date of last frost is just an average because it is based on the USDA zone info for Smithfield and it is different every year. Half of the time in Smithfield there is a last frost after March 15 so just be sure to be ready to protect your string beans if you have a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Smithfield

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 Smithfield

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