One of the first steps you take when you are determining 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 estimate when it's the best time to plant arctotis by checking out the USDA zone info for Madison.

Planting Calendar for Arctotis

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

Arctotis are moderately cold tolerant which means that you can plant them earlier than more sensitive plants.

The earliest that you can plant arctotis in Madison 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 arctotis and expect a good harvest is probably September. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your arctotis may not have a chance to fully mature. Starting your arctotis indoors is a great way to get them started a few weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

In Madison the average date of last frost happens on April 15. It might get as low as 5°F during the coldest months of winter.

Keep in mind that the actual date of last frost is just an average because it is based on the USDA zone info for Madison and it is different every year. Half of the time in Madison last frost occurs after April 15 so just be sure to be ready to protect your arctotis if you have a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Madison

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 Madison

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