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.

In Sterling you can estimate when it's the best time to plant dipladenia by looking at the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Dipladenia

Frost tolerance for dipladenia:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After the last frost.

Since dipladenia do not do well in cold weather it is important to wait until after all chance of frost has passed before you can plant them.

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

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is April 15 in Sterling. You should expect an average low temperature of -20°F in the coldest months of winter.

Always keep in mind that the actual date of last frost may not be accurate from year to year because it is based on the USDA zone info for Sterling and it can change quite a bit from year to year. Half of the time in Sterling it frosts late in the year after April 15 so make sure that you are prepared to protect your dipladenia in the event of a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Sterling

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 Sterling

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