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.

A way of figuring out when to plant chard is to look at the USDA zone info for Onalaska.

Planting Calendar for Chard

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

Chard do ok in some cold which means that you can plant them a little bit earlier in the year than other frost tender plants.

The earliest that you can plant chard in Onalaska 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 chard and expect a good harvest is probably August. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your chard may not have a chance to grow to maturity. If you are starting your chard indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a couple of weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

In Onalaska the average date of last frost happens on May 15. It might get as low as -25°F during the coldest months of winter.

It's important to remember that the actual date of last frost is just an average because it is based on the USDA zone info for Onalaska and it can change quite a bit from year to year. Since half of the time in Onalaska you get surprised by a frost after May 15 be ready to cover your chard in the event of a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Onalaska

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 Onalaska

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