One of the first steps you take when you are making a decision about 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.

You should be able to estimate when you can plant chrysanthemums by checking out the USDA zone info for Benson.

Planting Calendar for Chrysanthemums

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

Chrysanthemums do well in some cold which tells us that you can plant them slightly earlier in the year than plants that are more sensitive to the cold.

The earliest that you can plant chrysanthemums in Benson 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 chrysanthemums and expect a good harvest is probably August. If you wait any later than that and your chrysanthemums may not have a chance to grow to maturity. You can get started a little bit earlier by starting your chrysanthemums indoors.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is March 15 in Benson. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of 15°F.

Just be sure to remember that USDA zone info for Benson is an average and the actual date of last frost can change quite a bit from year to year. Since half of the time in Benson there is a last frost after March 15 be ready to protect your chrysanthemums in the event of one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Benson

Here is the info for USDA Zone 8b.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	March 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	November 15
Lowest Expected Low	15°F
Highest Expected Low	20°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is 15°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near 20°F.

Plants to Grow in Benson

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