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 first chance to plant firebush in Benson can be figured out by reviewing the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Firebush

Frost tolerance for firebush:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After the last frost has passed.

You can not plant firebush until after the last frost because they do not do well in cold weather.

The earliest that you can plant firebush in Benson 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 firebush and expect a good harvest is probably August. Any later than that and your firebush may not have a chance to grow to maturity. You can get started a couple of weeks earlier by starting your firebush indoors.

Last Frost Date

On average all chance of frost has passed is on March 15 in Benson. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of 15°F.

Since the USDA zone info for Benson is not always accurate the actual date of last frost changes from year to year. Half of the time in Benson you get surprised by a frost after March 15 so make sure that you are prepared to cover your firebush in the event of a surprise late frost.

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.