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.

It's a good idea to determine when it's the best time to plant dracaena by using the USDA zone info for Helena.

Planting Calendar for Dracaena

Frost tolerance for dracaena:	Very tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	Up to 7 weeks before last frost.

Since dracaena do well in cold you can plant them much earlier in the year than other plants that might not handle the cold.

The earliest that you can plant dracaena in Helena 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 dracaena and expect a good harvest is probably September. If you wait any later than that and your dracaena may not have a chance to fully mature. You can get started a couple of weeks earlier by starting your dracaena indoors.

Last Frost Date

In Helena the average date of last frost happens on March 15. You should expect an average low temperature of 10°F in the coldest months of winter.

Always keep in mind that the actual date of last frost is not always accurate because it is based on the USDA zone info for Helena and it will vary from year to year. Half of the time in Helena there is a last frost after March 15 so be sure to be ready to protect your dracaena if you have one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Helena

Here is the info for USDA Zone 8a.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	March 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	November 15
Lowest Expected Low	10°F
Highest Expected Low	15°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is 10°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near 15°F.

Plants to Grow in Helena

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