One of the best tools that you have as gardeners to help us estimate 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.

You can determine when you can plant tropical hibiscus in Fort Dodge by using the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Tropical Hibiscus

Frost tolerance for tropical hibiscus:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After all chance of frost has passed.

Tropical Hibiscus do not do well in cold weather which means that it's necessary to wait until it warms up after the last frost before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant tropical hibiscus in Fort Dodge 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 tropical hibiscus and expect a good harvest is probably August. If you wait any later than that and your tropical hibiscus may not have a chance to grow to maturity. Starting your tropical hibiscus indoors is a great way to get them started a few weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost has passed is on April 15 in Fort Dodge. You can expect an average low temperature of -20°F in the coldest months of winter.

It's important to remember that USDA zone info for Fort Dodge is an average and the actual date of last frost can change quite a bit from year to year. Half of the time in Fort Dodge last frost occurs after April 15 so always be ready to protect your tropical hibiscus in the event of one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Fort Dodge

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 Fort Dodge

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Fort Dodge.