One of the first steps you take when you are estimating your gardening schedule is find your USDA Zone info. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

The USDA zone info for Springfield should be read to determine when it's possible to plant tropical water plants.

Planting Calendar for Tropical Water Plants

Frost tolerance for tropical water plants:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After all chance of frost has passed.

You should not plant tropical water plants until after the last frost when the weather gets warmer because they are not cold tolerant.

The earliest that you can plant tropical water plants in Springfield 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 tropical water plants and expect a good harvest is probably August. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your tropical water plants may not have a chance to really do well. You can get started a couple of weeks earlier by starting your tropical water plants indoors.

Last Frost Date

In Springfield the average date of last frost happens on April 15. It might get as low as -10°F during the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Springfield is an average the actual date of last frost is different every year. Half of the time in Springfield you get surprised by a frost after April 15 so always be ready to cover your tropical water plants if you have a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Springfield

Here is the info for USDA Zone 6a.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	April 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	October 15
Lowest Expected Low	-10°F
Highest Expected Low	-5°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is -10°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near -5°F.

Plants to Grow in Springfield

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