When to Plant Zinnia in Atlantic, IA

Before planting it is a good idea to find your USDA Zone info to figure out your garden schedule. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

By referring to the USDA zone info for Atlantic you should be able to determine when it's the best time to plant zinnia.


Planting Calendar for Zinnia

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

Since zinnia require warm weather it's necessary to wait until after the last frost when the weather gets warmer before you can plant them.

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

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

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost when the weather gets warmer is on April 15 in Atlantic. It might get as low as -20°F during the coldest months of winter.

Remember that USDA zone info for Atlantic is an average and the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Since half of the time in Atlantic last frost occurs after April 15 be ready to cover your zinnia in the event of one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Atlantic

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 Atlantic

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