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.

The first opportunity to plant nasturtium in Des Moines should be figured out by checking out the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Nasturtium

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

Nasturtium require warm weather which means that you really should wait until it warms up after the last frost before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant nasturtium in Des Moines 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. Starting your nasturtium 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 Des Moines. You can 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 not always accurate because it is based on the USDA zone info for Des Moines and it is different every year. Half of the time in Des Moines last frost occurs after April 15 so be sure to be ready to cover your nasturtium if you have one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Des Moines

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 Des Moines

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Des Moines.