When to Plant Jerusalem artichokes in Zone 2b

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.

By looking at the USDA zone info for Zone 2b you should be able to determine when it's a good idea to plant jerusalem artichokes.


Planting Calendar for Jerusalem artichokes

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

Jerusalem artichokes do ok in some cold which tells us that you can plant them just a bit earlier in the year than plants that are more sensitive to the cold.

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Legend 
A good time to plant jerusalem artichokes
Possibly ok, but a risky time to plant jerusalem artichokes
Probably not a good time to plant jerusalem artichokes

The earliest that you can plant jerusalem artichokes in Zone 2b 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 jerusalem artichokes and expect a good harvest is probably August. If you wait any later than that and your jerusalem artichokes may not have a chance to grow to maturity. If you are starting your jerusalem artichokes indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a little bit earlier.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is May 15 in Zone 2b. You can expect an average low temperature of -45°F in the coldest months of winter.

Keep in mind that USDA zone info for Zone 2b is an average and the actual date of last frost is different every year. Half of the time in Zone 2b it frosts late in the year after May 15 so make sure that you are prepared to protect your jerusalem artichokes in the event of a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Zone 2b

Here is the info for USDA Zone 2b.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)May 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)August 15
Lowest Expected Low-45°F
Highest Expected Low-40°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is -45°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near -40°F.

Plants to Grow in Zone 2b

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Zone 2b.