One of the best tools that you have as gardeners to help us estimate your gardening schedule is the 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.

The first opportunity to plant borage in Eau Claire can be determined by reviewing the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Borage

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

Since borage 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 borage in Eau Claire 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 borage and expect a good harvest is probably August. If you wait any later than that and your borage may not have a chance to grow to maturity. Starting your borage indoors is a great way to get them started a few weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost is on May 15 in Eau Claire. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of -25°F.

Since the USDA zone info for Eau Claire is just an average the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Half of the time in Eau Claire it frosts late in the year after May 15 so make sure that you are prepared to cover your borage in the event of one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Eau Claire

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 Eau Claire

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Eau Claire.