Lemongrass · Staten Island, New York, United States
When to plant lemongrass in Staten Island
Main outdoor window
26 Apr - 24 May
The window this page is built around.
Timed from last spring frost
12 April
In Staten Island, on your chosen risk.
Ready to pick
1 Jun - 30 Nov
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 Staten Island
Each window is a range, not a single day. Earlier in the range buys you a longer season; later in it buys you a safer one.
Plant divisions
26 Apr - 24 May
After the last frost, once the soil has warmed. This crop is never fully dormant, so it cannot be planted bare-root in winter.
Harvest
1 Jun - 30 Nov
Lemongrass through the year
Against the frost risk in Staten Island
Why these dates
Plant divisions or rooted stems two weeks after the last frost. Harvest whole stems from the outside of the clump from midsummer, cutting at ground level.
Damaged at about 2C and killed by any real frost. Below zone 9 it will not overwinter outdoors, but a pot cut back to 15cm keeps easily in a cool bright room.
Lemongrass are planted once and then left in place, so there is no sowing offset to resolve. Nor is there a dormant season to plant into: this crop keeps its leaves and keeps growing through the winter, which is exactly why cold damages it. The window on this page therefore waits until the last frost in Staten Island has passed and the soil has begun to warm, giving the roots the longest possible run before the cold returns.
Staten Island sits in zone 7b, which is colder than this crop is rated for, so it will need winter protection or a container that can be moved under cover. The dates below still describe the right time of year; the open question is survival rather than timing.
Growing lemongrass in Staten Island
When should I plant lemongrass in Staten Island?
Aim for 26 Apr - 24 May in an average year. If you would rather not gamble on the weather, wait until 5 May - 2 Jun - by then frost has finished in nine years out of ten.
When will lemongrass be ready to harvest in Staten Island?
Expect to start picking around 1 Jun - 30 Nov, based on 100 to 150 days to maturity from the planting date calculated for this location.
How much frost will lemongrass tolerate?
Damaged at about 2C and killed by any real frost. Below zone 9 it will not overwinter outdoors, but a pot cut back to 15cm keeps easily in a cool bright room.