One of the first steps you take when you are getting a good idea your gardening schedule is find your USDA Zone info. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

It's possible to determine when it's possible to plant chard by checking out the USDA zone info for Monroe.

Planting Calendar for Chard

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

Chard do well in some cold which tells us that you can plant them a bit earlier in the year than more sensitive plants.

The earliest that you can plant chard in Monroe 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 chard and expect a good harvest is probably September. If you wait any later than that and your chard may not have a chance to really do well. If you are starting your chard indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a little bit earlier.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is April 15 in Monroe. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of -20°F.

Keep in mind that the actual date of last frost is an average because it is based on the USDA zone info for Monroe and it can change quite a bit from year to year. Since half of the time in Monroe you get a frost after April 15 be ready to protect your chard in the event of a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Monroe

Here is the info for USDA Zone 5a.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	April 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	October 15
Lowest Expected Low	-20°F
Highest Expected Low	-15°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is -20°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near -15°F.

Plants to Grow in Monroe

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