When to Plant Calendula in Anchorage, AK

One of the best tools that you have as gardeners to help us figure out your gardening schedule is the USDA zone info. The most important data that the zone info tells us is average last frost and the lowest expected temperature for your area.

You can estimate when it's a good idea to plant calendula in Anchorage by looking at the USDA zone info.


Planting Calendar for Calendula

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

Calendula are one of those plants that can tolerate a little bit of cold weather which means that you can plant them earlier than more sensitive plants.

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

The earliest that you can plant calendula in Anchorage 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 calendula and expect a good harvest is probably August. If you wait any later than that and your calendula may not have a chance to grow to maturity. You can get started a few weeks earlier by starting your calendula indoors.

Last Frost Date

In Anchorage the average date of last frost happens on May 15. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of -25°F.

It's important to remember that USDA zone info for Anchorage is an average and the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Half of the time in Anchorage it frosts late in the year after May 15 so be sure to be ready to protect your calendula in the event of a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Anchorage

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 Anchorage

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