One of the first steps you take when you are getting a good idea your gardening schedule is find your USDA Zone info. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

You can estimate when to plant achimenes in Clear Lake by using the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Achimenes

Frost tolerance for achimenes:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After the last frost has passed.

Since achimenes are not cold tolerant it is necessary to wait until after the last frost before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant achimenes in Clear Lake 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 achimenes and expect a good harvest is probably August. If you wait any later than that and your achimenes may not have a chance to fully mature. You can get started a few weeks earlier by starting your achimenes indoors.

Last Frost Date

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

It's important to remember that USDA zone info for Clear Lake is an average and the actual date of last frost changes from year to year. Half of the time in Clear Lake you get surprised by a frost after April 15 so make sure that you are ready to protect your achimenes if you have a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Clear Lake

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 Clear Lake

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Clear Lake.