One of the best tools that you have as gardeners to help us figure out 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 reviewing the USDA zone info for Bethel you should be able to determine when it's the best time to plant rudbeckia.

Planting Calendar for Rudbeckia

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

Rudbeckia are moderately cold tolerant which tells us that you can plant them earlier than other plants that might not handle the cold.

The earliest that you can plant rudbeckia 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 rudbeckia and expect a good harvest is probably August. If you wait any later than that and your rudbeckia may not have a chance to grow to maturity. If you are starting your rudbeckia indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a few weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

In Bethel the average date of last frost happens on May 15. You can expect an average low temperature of -35°F in the coldest months of winter.

Just be sure to remember that the actual date of last frost is an average because it is based on the USDA zone info for Bethel and it is different every year. Half of the time in Bethel it frosts late in the year after May 15 so make sure that you are prepared to cover your rudbeckia 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.