One of the best tools that you have as gardeners to help us determine your gardening schedule is the 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 Jefferson City can be used to estimate when to plant dahlias.

Planting Calendar for Dahlias

Frost tolerance for dahlias:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After the last frost when the weather gets warmer.

You really shouldn't plant dahlias until after the last frost has passed because they are not cold tolerant.

The earliest that you can plant dahlias in Jefferson City 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 dahlias and expect a good harvest is probably August. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your dahlias may not have a chance to fully mature. If you are starting your dahlias 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 April 15 in Jefferson City. It might get as low as 0°F during the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Jefferson City is not always accurate the actual date of last frost is different every year. Half of the time in Jefferson City you get surprised by a frost after April 15 so be sure to be ready to cover your dahlias in the event of a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Jefferson City

Here is the info for USDA Zone 7a.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	April 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	October 15
Lowest Expected Low	0°F
Highest Expected Low	5°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is 0°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near 5°F.

Plants to Grow in Jefferson City

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Jefferson City.