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.

A common way of determining when it's possible to plant gomphrena is to use the USDA zone info for Council Bluffs.

Planting Calendar for Gomphrena

Frost tolerance for gomphrena:	Tolerant of a very small amount of frost.
When to plant:	Up to 3 weeks before last frost.

Gomphrena tend to make it in very little cold which means that you can plant them slightly earlier in the year than other frost tender plants.

The earliest that you can plant gomphrena in Council Bluffs is March. However, you really should wait until April if you don't want to take any chances.

The last month that you can plant gomphrena and expect a good harvest is probably August. If you wait any later than that and your gomphrena may not have a chance to really do well. Starting your gomphrena indoors is a great way to get them started a little bit earlier.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is April 15 in Council Bluffs. You should expect an average low temperature of -15°F in the coldest months of winter.

It's important to remember that the actual date of last frost is an average because it is based on the USDA zone info for Council Bluffs and it is different every year. Since half of the time in Council Bluffs you get a frost after April 15 be ready to protect your gomphrena if you have a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Council Bluffs

Here is the info for USDA Zone 5b.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	April 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	October 15
Lowest Expected Low	-15°F
Highest Expected Low	-10°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is -15°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near -10°F.

Plants to Grow in Council Bluffs

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Council Bluffs.