The USDA Zone info is a great tool for gardeners to help us estimate your gardening schedule. The most important data that the zone info tells us is average last frost and the lowest expected temperature for your area.

By checking out the USDA zone info for Ankeny you will be able to estimate when it's a good idea to plant arabis.

Planting Calendar for Arabis

Frost tolerance for arabis:	Very tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	Up to 7 weeks before last frost.

Arabis do well in cold which tells us that you can get them planted much earlier than other plants that might not handle the cold.

The earliest that you can plant arabis in Ankeny is February. However, you really should wait until March if you don't want to take any chances.

The last month that you can plant arabis and expect a good harvest is probably September. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your arabis may not have a chance to fully mature. You can get started a little bit earlier by starting your arabis indoors.

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost has passed is on April 15 in Ankeny. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of -20°F.

It's important to remember that USDA zone info for Ankeny is just an average and the actual date of last frost changes from year to year. Since half of the time in Ankeny there is a last frost after April 15 be ready to cover your arabis in the event of a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Ankeny

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 Ankeny

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