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

The earliest that you can plant eggplants in Sussex should be figured out by using the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Eggplants

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

Since eggplants do not do well in cold weather it's necessary to wait until after the last frost before you can plant them.

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

The last month that you can plant eggplants and expect a good harvest is probably August. Any later than that and your eggplants may not have a chance to really do well. Starting your eggplants indoors is a great way to get them started a little bit earlier.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is April 15 in Sussex. It might get as low as -20°F during the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Sussex is just an average the actual date of last frost changes from year to year. Half of the time in Sussex you get a frost after April 15 so make sure that you are prepared to cover your eggplants in the event of one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Sussex

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 Sussex

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