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When to Plant Creeping Zinnia in Altoona, IA

One of the best tools that you have as gardeners to help us determine your gardening schedule is the 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 Altoona you can figure out when it's the best time to plant creeping zinnia by using the USDA zone info.


Planting Calendar for Creeping Zinnia

Frost tolerance for creeping zinnia: Tolerant of a very small amount of frost.
When to plant: Up to 3 weeks before last frost.

Creeping Zinnia can survive in a tiny bit of cold which tells us that you can plant them just a tiny bit earlier in the year than more sensitive plants.

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Legend 
A good time to plant creeping zinnia
Possibly ok, but a risky time to plant creeping zinnia
Probably not a good time to plant creeping zinnia

The earliest that you can plant creeping zinnia in Altoona is March. However, you really should wait until April if you don't want to take any chances.

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

Last Frost Date

In Altoona the average date of last frost happens on April 15. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of -20°F.

Since the USDA zone info for Altoona may not be accurate from year to year the actual date of last frost can change quite a bit from year to year. Half of the time in Altoona there is a last frost after April 15 so make sure that you are prepared to protect your creeping zinnia in the event of one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Altoona

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 Altoona

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