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.

By checking out the USDA zone info for Bethel you will be able to estimate when to plant asters.

Planting Calendar for Asters

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

Since asters are moderately cold tolerant you can plant them a little bit earlier in the year than more sensitive plants.

The earliest that you can plant asters in Bethel 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 asters and expect a good harvest is probably August. Any later than that and your asters may not have a chance to really do well. If you are starting your asters indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a few weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost is on May 15 in Bethel. It might get as low as -35°F during the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Bethel is just an average the actual date of last frost is different every year. Since half of the time in Bethel there is a last frost after May 15 be ready to protect your asters if you have a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Bethel

Here is the info for USDA Zone 3b.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	May 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	September 15
Lowest Expected Low	-35°F
Highest Expected Low	-30°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is -35°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near -30°F.

Plants to Grow in Bethel

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