When to Plant Purple Rock Cress in Sparta, WI

The USDA Zone info is a great tool for gardeners to help us determine your gardening schedule. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

By checking out the USDA zone info for Sparta you will be able to determine when you can plant purple rock cress.


Planting Calendar for Purple Rock Cress

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

You can plant purple rock cress a lot earlier in the year because they do well in cold.

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Legend 
A good time to plant purple rock cress
Possibly ok, but a risky time to plant purple rock cress
Probably not a good time to plant purple rock cress

The earliest that you can plant purple rock cress in Sparta 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 purple rock cress and expect a good harvest is probably August. Any later than that and your purple rock cress may not have a chance to grow to maturity. Starting your purple rock cress indoors is a great way to get them started a few weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is May 15 in Sparta. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of -25°F.

Since the USDA zone info for Sparta is an average the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Since half of the time in Sparta you get surprised by a frost after May 15 be ready to cover your purple rock cress in the event of one of those late frosts.

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.