One of the first steps you take when you are estimating your gardening schedule is find your 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 balloon flower in Ketchikan by using the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Balloon Flower

Frost tolerance for balloon flower:	Tolerant of a very small amount of frost.
When to plant:	Up to 3 weeks before last frost.

Since balloon flower are one of those plants that can tolerate a tiny bit of cold weather you can plant them slightly earlier in the year than other frost tender plants.

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

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost is on April 15 in Ketchikan. It might get as low as 5°F during the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Ketchikan is an average the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Half of the time in Ketchikan it frosts late in the year after April 15 so just be sure to be ready to protect your balloon flower in the event of a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Ketchikan

Here is the info for USDA Zone 7b.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	April 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	October 15
Lowest Expected Low	5°F
Highest Expected Low	10°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is 5°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near 10°F.

Plants to Grow in Ketchikan

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