When to Plant Marigold in Watertown, SD

One of the first steps you take when you are making a decision about 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.

In Watertown you can estimate when you can plant marigold by checking out the USDA zone info.


Planting Calendar for Marigold

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

It's not a good idea to plant marigold until after the last frost because they require warm weather.

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Legend 
A good time to plant marigold
Possibly ok, but a risky time to plant marigold
Probably not a good time to plant marigold

The earliest that you can plant marigold in Watertown is May. However, you really should wait until June if you don't want to take any chances.

The last month that you can plant marigold and expect a good harvest is probably August. Any later than that and your marigold may not have a chance to fully mature. Starting your marigold indoors is a great way to get them started a couple of weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

In Watertown the average date of last frost happens on May 15. In the coldest months of winter you can expect an average low temperature of -30°F.

Since the USDA zone info for Watertown is not always accurate the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Half of the time in Watertown last frost occurs after May 15 so make sure that you are ready to protect your marigold if you have a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Watertown

Here is the info for USDA Zone 4a.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)May 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)September 15
Lowest Expected Low-30°F
Highest Expected Low-25°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is -30°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near -25°F.

Plants to Grow in Watertown

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