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.

The first chance to plant coleus in Alpena can be figured out by referring to the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Coleus

Frost tolerance for coleus:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After the last frost has passed.

It's probably not a good idea to plant coleus until after the last frost when the weather gets warmer because they require warm weather.

The earliest that you can plant coleus in Alpena 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 coleus and expect a good harvest is probably August. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your coleus may not have a chance to fully mature. If you are starting your coleus indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a little bit earlier.

Last Frost Date

On average all chance of frost has passed is on April 15 in Alpena. It might get as low as -15°F during the coldest months of winter.

It's important to remember that USDA zone info for Alpena is an average and the actual date of last frost is different every year. Since half of the time in Alpena it frosts late in the year after April 15 be ready to protect your coleus if you have one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Alpena

Here is the info for USDA Zone 5b.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	April 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	October 15
Lowest Expected Low	-15°F
Highest Expected Low	-10°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is -15°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near -10°F.

Plants to Grow in Alpena

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