One of the best tools that you have as gardeners to help us estimate your gardening schedule is the USDA zone info. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

The USDA zone info for Benton can be read to determine when to plant columbine.

Planting Calendar for Columbine

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

Since columbine are moderately cold tolerant you can plant them a bit earlier in the year than other frost tender plants.

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

Last Frost Date

In Benton the average date of last frost happens on April 15. You should expect an average low temperature of 5°F in the coldest months of winter.

Just be sure to remember that USDA zone info for Benton may not be accurate from year to year and the actual date of last frost can change quite a bit from year to year. Since half of the time in Benton you get surprised by a frost after April 15 be ready to protect your columbine in the event of a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Benton

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 Benton

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