The USDA Zone info is a great tool for gardeners to help us figure out your gardening schedule. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

You will be able to figure out when it's a good idea to plant marigold by referring to the USDA zone info for Lancaster.

Planting Calendar for Marigold

Frost tolerance for marigold:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After all chance of frost has passed.

You should not plant marigold until after the last frost when the weather gets warmer because they are not cold tolerant.

The earliest that you can plant marigold in Lancaster 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 marigold and expect a good harvest is probably August. If you wait any later than that and your marigold may not have a chance to really do well. If you are starting your marigold indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a little bit earlier.

Last Frost Date

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

Just be sure to remember that USDA zone info for Lancaster is an average and the actual date of last frost can change quite a bit from year to year. Half of the time in Lancaster there is a last frost after March 15 so always be ready to cover your marigold if you have one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Lancaster

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 Lancaster

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