Before planting it is a good idea to find your USDA Zone info to figure out your garden schedule. The most important data that the zone info tells us is average last frost and the lowest expected temperature for your area.

The USDA zone info for Waterford should be used to determine when it's possible to plant garden mums.

Planting Calendar for Garden Mums

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

Since garden mums are one of those plants that can tolerate a little bit of cold weather you can plant them a bit earlier in the year than more sensitive plants.

The earliest that you can plant garden mums in Waterford is January. However, you really should wait until February if you don't want to take any chances.

The last month that you can plant garden mums and expect a good harvest is probably October. Any later than that and your garden mums may not have a chance to fully mature. Starting your garden mums indoors is a great way to get them started a couple of weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

In Waterford the average date of last frost happens on February 15. It might get as low as 25°F during the coldest months of winter.

Keep in mind that the actual date of last frost is an average because it is based on the USDA zone info for Waterford and it changes from year to year. Half of the time in Waterford last frost occurs after February 15 so always be ready to protect your garden mums if you have a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Waterford

Here is the info for USDA Zone 9b.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	February 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	December 15
Lowest Expected Low	25°F
Highest Expected Low	30°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is 25°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near 30°F.

Plants to Grow in Waterford

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