One of the first steps you take when you are determining 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.

It's possible to determine when it's a good idea to plant rock cress by looking at the USDA zone info for Essex Junction.

Planting Calendar for Rock Cress

Frost tolerance for rock cress:	Very tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	Up to 7 weeks before last frost.

Rock Cress are very cold tolerant which means that you can start planting them much earlier than more sensitive plants.

The earliest that you can plant rock cress in Essex Junction is March. However, you really should wait until April if you don't want to take any chances.

The last month that you can plant rock cress and expect a good harvest is probably August. Any later than that and your rock cress may not have a chance to fully mature. You can get started a couple of weeks earlier by starting your rock cress indoors.

Last Frost Date

On average all chance of frost has passed is on May 15 in Essex Junction. In the coldest months of winter you can expect an average low temperature of -25°F.

Remember that the actual date of last frost may not be accurate from year to year because it is based on the USDA zone info for Essex Junction and it will vary from year to year. Half of the time in Essex Junction you get a frost after May 15 so just be sure to be ready to cover your rock cress in the event of one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Essex Junction

Here is the info for USDA Zone 4b.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	May 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	September 15
Lowest Expected Low	-25°F
Highest Expected Low	-20°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is -25°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near -20°F.

Plants to Grow in Essex Junction

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Essex Junction.