When to Plant Turnips in Zone 6b

One of the best tools that you have as gardeners to help us figure out your gardening schedule is the USDA zone info. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

The first opportunity to plant turnips in Zone 6b should be determined by reviewing the USDA zone info.


Planting Calendar for Turnips

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

Since turnips are not cold tolerant you need to wait until after the last frost when the weather gets warmer before you can plant them.

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

The earliest that you can plant turnips in Zone 6b 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 turnips and expect a good harvest is probably August. Any later than that and your turnips may not have a chance to grow to maturity. If you are starting your turnips 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 April 15 in Zone 6b. In the coldest months of winter you can expect an average low temperature of -5°F.

It's important to remember that the actual date of last frost is just an average because it is based on the USDA zone info for Zone 6b and it can change quite a bit from year to year. Half of the time in Zone 6b last frost occurs after April 15 so always be ready to cover your turnips in the event of a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Zone 6b

Here is the info for USDA Zone 6b.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)April 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)October 15
Lowest Expected Low-5°F
Highest Expected Low0°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is -5°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near 0°F.

Plants to Grow in Zone 6b

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Zone 6b.