One of the best tools that you have as gardeners to help us figure out 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.

The earliest that you can plant torenia in Ames should be figured out by using the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Torenia

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

Torenia require warm weather which means that it's necessary to wait until it warms up after the last frost when the weather gets warmer before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant torenia in Ames 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 torenia and expect a good harvest is probably August. Any later than that and your torenia may not have a chance to really do well. If you are starting your torenia indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a few weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

In Ames 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.

Since the USDA zone info for Ames is an average the actual date of last frost changes from year to year. Half of the time in Ames last frost occurs after April 15 so be sure to be ready to protect your torenia in the event of one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Ames

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 Ames

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