One of the first steps you take when you are making a decision about 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.

The first chance to plant pincushion flower in Clay can be determined by reviewing the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Pincushion Flower

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

Since pincushion flower do well in moderate cold you can plant them a little earlier in the year than other frost tender plants.

The earliest that you can plant pincushion flower in Clay is February. However, you really should wait until March if you don't want to take any chances.

The last month that you can plant pincushion flower and expect a good harvest is probably September. Any later than that and your pincushion flower may not have a chance to grow to maturity. You can get started a couple of weeks earlier by starting your pincushion flower indoors.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is April 15 in Clay. You should expect an average low temperature of 5°F in the coldest months of winter.

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

USDA Zone Info for Clay

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 Clay

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