The USDA Zone info is a great tool for gardeners to help us determine 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.

A way of making a decision about when to plant erysimum is to look at the USDA zone info for Lake Elmo.

Planting Calendar for Erysimum

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

Since erysimum are one of those plants that can tolerate a little bit of cold weather you can plant them a little bit earlier in the year than other plants that might not handle the cold.

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

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost when the weather gets warmer is on May 15 in Lake Elmo. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of -25°F.

Remember that the actual date of last frost is an average because it is based on the USDA zone info for Lake Elmo and it changes from year to year. Since half of the time in Lake Elmo there is a last frost after May 15 be ready to protect your erysimum in the event of a surprise late frost.

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.