One of the first steps you take when you are determining your gardening schedule is find your USDA Zone info. The most important data that the zone info tells us is average last frost and the lowest expected temperature for your area.

By looking at the USDA zone info for Lake Elmo it's a good idea to figure out when you can plant calendula.

Planting Calendar for Calendula

Frost tolerance for calendula:	Tolerant of some frost.
When to plant:	Up to 5 weeks before last frost.

Calendula are one of those plants that can tolerate a little bit of cold weather which means that you can start planting them earlier than other frost tender plants.

The earliest that you can plant calendula in Lake Elmo is March. However, you really should wait until April if you don't want to take any chances.

The last month that you can plant calendula and expect a good harvest is probably August. Any later than that and your calendula may not have a chance to grow to maturity. If you are starting your calendula indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a couple of weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost is on May 15 in Lake Elmo. It might get as low as -25°F during the coldest months of winter.

Always keep in mind that USDA zone info for Lake Elmo is an average and the actual date of last frost can change quite a bit from year to year. Since half of the time in Lake Elmo there is a last frost after May 15 be ready to cover your calendula in the event of one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Lake Elmo

Here is the info for USDA Zone 4b.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	May 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	September 15
Lowest Expected Low	-25°F
Highest Expected Low	-20°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is -25°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near -20°F.

Plants to Grow in Lake Elmo

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Lake Elmo.