When to Plant Violas in Clear Lake, IA

Before planting it is a good idea to find your USDA Zone info to figure out your garden schedule. The most important data that the zone info tells us is average last frost and the lowest expected temperature for your area.

The first opportunity to plant violas in Clear Lake can be figured out by looking at the USDA zone info.


Planting Calendar for Violas

Frost tolerance for violas: Very tolerant of frost.
When to plant: Up to 7 weeks before last frost.

You can plant violas earlier in the year because they do well in cold.

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

The earliest that you can plant violas in Clear Lake is February. However, you really should wait until March if you don't want to take any chances.

The last month that you can plant violas and expect a good harvest is probably September. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your violas may not have a chance to grow to maturity. You can get started a couple of weeks earlier by starting your violas indoors.

Last Frost Date

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

Since the USDA zone info for Clear Lake may not be accurate from year to year the actual date of last frost is different every year. Since half of the time in Clear Lake last frost occurs after April 15 be ready to cover your violas if you have a 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.