Swiss chard · 'Ākra, Nineveh, Iraq
When to plant swiss chard in 'Ākra
Main outdoor window
21 Feb - 14 Mar
A climate estimate. Check your soil, forecast and cultivar.
Timed from last spring frost
25 February
In 'Ākra, on your chosen risk.
Ready to pick
12-22 Apr
If you plant at the start of the window.
The average last frost. Half of all years are later than this.
Step by step in 'Ākra
Download these planting dates (.ics)
Import into Apple Calendar, Google Calendar or Outlook. Dates use the selected risk level and are planning estimates, not frost alerts.
Each window is a planning range. Check the forecast, soil and cultivar before planting; a later date is not automatically safer in hot or wet conditions.
Start indoors
21 Jan - 11 Feb
Five weeks before your last frost, under cover or on a windowsill.
Sow for overwintering
9-30 Sep
Counting back 74 days from your first frost so the crop matures in time.
Sow direct
21 Feb - 14 Mar
Delayed by a soil-warming estimate derived from historical air temperatures. The frost-only date would be 11 Feb. Measure your soil before planting.
Plant out
21 Feb - 14 Mar
Delayed by a soil-warming estimate derived from historical air temperatures. The frost-only date would be 18 Feb. Measure your soil before planting.
Harvest
12-22 Apr
Swiss chard through the year
Against the frost risk in 'Ākra
Seasonal context
Rainfall and the growing season in 'Ākra
March has the highest average precipitation (58 mm); July has the lowest (2 mm). Compare this pattern with the planting windows and your water supply.
During wetter months, check that beds and containers drain after heavy rain. During drier months, plan how you will keep seeds and new transplants watered. Monthly averages can hide long dry spells and intense storms; they do not show soil moisture, humidity or this week's weather.
Source: NASA POWER, corrected MERRA-2 precipitation, 2001–2020. Values are approximate monthly totals, including the water equivalent of snow, from the nearest 0.5° × 0.625° grid cell. This reference period differs from the temperature record. Rainfall provides context and does not change the calculated planting dates. Method and limitations.
Monthly growing conditions in 'Ākra
Compare the planting window with the local temperature pattern. These are historical monthly averages, not this year's forecast or measured soil temperatures. Average frost days do not tell you whether a particular night will freeze.
| Month | Average low | Average high | Frost days |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 1.5°C (34.6°F)34.6°F (1.5°C) | 11.9°C (53.4°F)53.4°F (11.9°C) | 9.0 |
| February | 2.4°C (36.3°F)36.3°F (2.4°C) | 14°C (57.2°F)57.2°F (14°C) | 6.4 |
| March | 6°C (42.8°F)42.8°F (6°C) | 18.7°C (65.7°F)65.7°F (18.7°C) | 1.1 |
| April | 11°C (51.7°F)51.7°F (11°C) | 25.1°C (77.2°F)77.2°F (25.1°C) | 0.1 |
| May | 16.8°C (62.2°F)62.2°F (16.8°C) | 32.2°C (89.9°F)89.9°F (32.2°C) | 0.0 |
| June | 22.7°C (72.9°F)72.9°F (22.7°C) | 39.4°C (103°F)103°F (39.4°C) | 0.0 |
| July | 26.7°C (80°F)80°F (26.7°C) | 43°C (109.5°F)109.5°F (43°C) | 0.0 |
| August | 26.6°C (79.8°F)79.8°F (26.6°C) | 42.6°C (108.8°F)108.8°F (42.6°C) | 0.0 |
| September | 22°C (71.7°F)71.7°F (22°C) | 37.3°C (99.2°F)99.2°F (37.3°C) | 0.0 |
| October | 16.2°C (61.1°F)61.1°F (16.2°C) | 29.8°C (85.6°F)85.6°F (29.8°C) | 0.0 |
| November | 8.4°C (47.1°F)47.1°F (8.4°C) | 20.2°C (68.3°F)68.3°F (20.2°C) | 0.6 |
| December | 3.7°C (38.6°F)38.6°F (3.7°C) | 14.2°C (57.6°F)57.6°F (14.2°C) | 4.6 |
For swiss chard, also check drainage, sunlight and cultivar requirements. See the rainfall context above; humidity, irrigation and local pest pressure are not calculated.
Local growing check
Before choosing swiss chard for 'Ākra
- March is the wettest month in the rainfall grid, averaging about 58 mm. Check how your own bed drains and plan watering around actual soil moisture; monthly rain totals are not an irrigation schedule.
The temperature and rainfall tables on this page show the underlying climate estimates. How these suitability checks work · Record what happens in your garden.
Before you plant swiss chard
Use the calendar to plan ahead, then check the conditions in your own garden.
- Measure the soil at sowing depth. Aim for at least 10°C (50°F); the calendar estimates soil warmth from air temperatures and cannot measure your bed.
- Check the local overnight forecast before planting out. Delay planting or keep protection ready if frost is forecast, even after the historical last-frost date.
- Harden off plants raised indoors: gradually expose them to outdoor light, wind and temperature before their final move into the bed.
- Use the maturity range on your seed packet when choosing a variety. Cold, short days and transplant stress can make harvest later than the calendar estimate.
Harvest stems and leaves without exhausting the plant
Sow or plant into fertile, well-drained soil and thin crowded clusters. Space plants for the harvest size you want: baby leaves and large cooking stems are different targets.
Take outer stems cleanly while leaving the growing centre intact. A small repeated harvest lets a healthy plant replace leaves instead of forcing it to recover from complete stripping.
Keep moisture steady and check for leaf damage and flowering stems. When the plant bolts or leaf quality declines, judge whether another sowing is more useful than keeping an old plant indefinitely.
Growing in a container
Chard can be productive in containers. Leave room for individual stems to expand and reach the plant easily without breaking neighbouring leaves.
What to record this season
Which sowing and stem variety gave the longest usable leaf harvest? Add the cultivar, sowing date and conditions to your growing record so you can compare next season.
Further reading: RHS chard growing guide . General crop guidance; local dates on this site are calculated separately. Source checked 19 September 2026 by Safe to Plant; this is not an expert review.
The RHS guide is written for UK growing conditions. Its cultivation advice does not validate the dates calculated for your town.
How the dates are calculated and their limits · Keep a growing record · Report a local discrepancy
Why these dates
Sow or plant into fertile, well-drained soil and thin crowded clusters. Space plants for the harvest size you want: baby leaves and large cooking stems are different targets.
Protect tender growth from frost and wait for suitable growing warmth. The catalog cold-damage figure is a reference, not a guarantee: duration, wind, plant age and acclimatisation affect damage.
This calendar uses frost-relative offsets as a starting point. Swiss chard are timed from 5 weeks before that frost for an indoor start, with planting out 1 weeks before it, and this page simply resolves those offsets against the frost date computed for 'Ākra.
The calendar also applies a soil-warming estimate derived from historical air temperatures. Where that estimate is later than the frost-based date, it delays the window. Soil in your own garden can warm earlier or later; a thermometer at sowing depth is a better final check. Cold, wet conditions can slow germination and increase decay risk.
The median frost-free season here is 291 days, against 50 to 60 days to maturity for this crop counted from sowing. That margin is what decides whether a late sowing is worth attempting.
Also in 'Ākra
Other vegetables to time
Growing swiss chard in 'Ākra
Can I grow swiss chard in 'Ākra?
The calendar estimates a planting window, not a guarantee of success. March is the wettest month in the rainfall grid, averaging about 58 mm. Check how your own bed drains and plan watering around actual soil moisture; monthly rain totals are not an irrigation schedule.
When should I plant swiss chard in 'Ākra?
Aim for 21 Feb - 14 Mar in an average year. If you would rather not gamble on the weather, wait until 19 Mar - 9 Apr - by then frost has finished in nine years out of ten.
Can I plant swiss chard earlier in 'Ākra?
The historical frost estimate is 11 Feb. For Swiss chard, an air-temperature model estimates soil warmth of about 10°C (50°F) around 21 Feb. This is not a soil measurement or a forecast. Check your bed at sowing depth; cold, wet conditions can slow growth and increase decay risk.
When might swiss chard be ready to harvest in 'Ākra?
The estimated period is 12-22 Apr, based on 50 to 60 days from the modeled planting date. Cultivar, planting material and growing conditions can change this interval; check the plant as well as the calendar.
How much frost will swiss chard tolerate?
Protect tender growth from frost and wait for suitable growing warmth. The catalog cold-damage figure is a reference, not a guarantee: duration, wind, plant age and acclimatisation affect damage.