One of the first steps you take when you are making a decision about 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.

By referring to the USDA zone info for Sparta it's possible to determine when you can plant banana.

Planting Calendar for Banana

Frost tolerance for banana:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After the last frost when the weather gets warmer.

You really shouldn't plant banana until after the last frost has passed because they are not cold tolerant.

The earliest that you can plant banana in Sparta is May. However, you really should wait until June if you don't want to take any chances.

The last month that you can plant banana and expect a good harvest is probably August. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your banana may not have a chance to really do well. You can get started a little bit earlier by starting your banana indoors.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is May 15 in Sparta. It might get as low as -25°F during the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Sparta is an average the actual date of last frost can change quite a bit from year to year. Half of the time in Sparta you get surprised by a frost after May 15 so just be sure to be ready to cover your banana if you have a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Sparta

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 Sparta

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