One of the first steps you take when you are figuring out your gardening schedule is find your 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 opportunity to plant liatris in Estes Park should be figured out by looking at the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Liatris

Frost tolerance for liatris:	Very tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	Up to 7 weeks before last frost.

Liatris can survive in quite a bit of cold which means that you can plant them earlier in the year than other frost tender plants.

The earliest that you can plant liatris in Estes Park is February. However, you really should wait until March if you don't want to take any chances.

The last month that you can plant liatris and expect a good harvest is probably September. Any later than that and your liatris may not have a chance to really do well. If you are starting your liatris indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a little bit earlier.

Last Frost Date

In Estes Park the average date of last frost happens on April 15. You can expect an average low temperature of -20°F in the coldest months of winter.

Remember that the actual date of last frost is an average because it is based on the USDA zone info for Estes Park and it will vary from year to year. Half of the time in Estes Park there is a last frost after April 15 so be sure to be ready to protect your liatris in the event of one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Estes Park

Here is the info for USDA Zone 5a.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	April 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	October 15
Lowest Expected Low	-20°F
Highest Expected Low	-15°F

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

Plants to Grow in Estes Park

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Estes Park.