The USDA Zone info is a great tool for gardeners to help us estimate 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 common way of making a decision about when it's a good idea to plant melampodium is to use the USDA zone info for Rusk.

Planting Calendar for Melampodium

Frost tolerance for melampodium:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After the last frost has passed.

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

The earliest that you can plant melampodium in Rusk 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 melampodium and expect a good harvest is probably August. Any later than that and your melampodium may not have a chance to really do well. Starting your melampodium indoors is a great way to get them started a few weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

In Rusk the average date of last frost happens on March 15. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of 15°F.

Remember that the actual date of last frost is an average because it is based on the USDA zone info for Rusk and it will vary from year to year. Since half of the time in Rusk last frost occurs after March 15 be ready to cover your melampodium if you have one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Rusk

Here is the info for USDA Zone 8b.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	March 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	November 15
Lowest Expected Low	15°F
Highest Expected Low	20°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is 15°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near 20°F.

Plants to Grow in Rusk

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