One of the best tools that you have as gardeners to help us figure out your gardening schedule is the 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 to plant balsam by checking out the USDA zone info for Prescott.

Planting Calendar for Balsam

Frost tolerance for balsam:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After the last frost.

You should not plant balsam until after all chance of frost has passed because they are not cold tolerant.

The earliest that you can plant balsam in Prescott is April. However, you really should wait until May if you don't want to take any chances.

The last month that you can plant balsam and expect a good harvest is probably August. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your balsam may not have a chance to fully mature. If you are starting your balsam indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a couple of weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is March 15 in Prescott. It might get as low as 10°F during the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Prescott is just an average the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Since half of the time in Prescott it frosts late in the year after March 15 be ready to cover your balsam in the event of a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Prescott

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 Prescott

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