When to Plant Nasturtium in Charles City, IA

One of the first steps you take when you are getting a good idea 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.

The USDA zone info for Charles City should be looked at to determine when you can plant nasturtium.


Planting Calendar for Nasturtium

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

It's not a good idea to plant nasturtium until after the last frost because they do not do well in cold weather.

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

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

Last Frost Date

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

Remember that the actual date of last frost is not always accurate because it is based on the USDA zone info for Charles City and it can change quite a bit from year to year. Half of the time in Charles City you get a frost after April 15 so make sure that you are ready to cover your nasturtium if you have a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Charles City

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 Charles City

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Charles City.