Before planting it is a good idea to find your USDA Zone info to estimate your garden schedule. The most important data that the zone info tells us is average last frost and the lowest expected temperature for your area.

By referring to the USDA zone info for Madison you should be able to figure out when it's a good idea to plant sanvitalia.

Planting Calendar for Sanvitalia

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

Sanvitalia are barely cold tolerant which tells us that you can start planting them slightly earlier than plants that are more sensitive to the cold.

The earliest that you can plant sanvitalia in Madison 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 sanvitalia and expect a good harvest is probably August. If you wait any later than that and your sanvitalia may not have a chance to fully mature. Starting your sanvitalia indoors is a great way to get them started a couple of weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

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

Since the USDA zone info for Madison is an average the actual date of last frost is different every year. Half of the time in Madison it frosts late in the year after April 15 so make sure that you are ready to cover your sanvitalia in the event of a 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.