One of the first steps you take when you are figuring out 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.

In Council Bluffs you can figure out when it's a good idea to plant mimulus by referring to the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Mimulus

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

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

The earliest that you can plant mimulus in Council Bluffs 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 mimulus and expect a good harvest is probably August. Any later than that and your mimulus may not have a chance to really do well. You can get started a little bit earlier by starting your mimulus indoors.

Last Frost Date

In Council Bluffs the average date of last frost happens on April 15. You can expect an average low temperature of -15°F in the coldest months of winter.

Keep in mind that USDA zone info for Council Bluffs is not always accurate and the actual date of last frost changes from year to year. Half of the time in Council Bluffs you get surprised by a frost after April 15 so make sure that you are ready to protect your mimulus in the event of 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.