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.

A common way of figuring out when it's possible to plant squash is to consult the USDA zone info for Sparta.

Planting Calendar for Squash

Frost tolerance for squash:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After the last frost has passed.

You should not plant squash until after all chance of frost has passed because they do not do well in cold weather.

The earliest that you can plant squash 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 squash and expect a good harvest is probably August. Any later than that and your squash may not have a chance to really do well. Starting your squash indoors is a great way to get them started a few weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

In Sparta the average date of last frost happens on May 15. In the coldest months of winter you can expect an average low temperature of -25°F.

Since the USDA zone info for Sparta is not always accurate the actual date of last frost changes from year to year. Half of the time in Sparta it frosts late in the year after May 15 so just be sure to be ready to cover your squash 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.