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.

In Fort Madison you can estimate when to plant clover by using the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Clover

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

Clover are one of those plants that can tolerate a tiny bit of cold weather which tells us that you can plant them slightly earlier than other plants that might not handle the cold.

The earliest that you can plant clover in Fort Madison 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 clover and expect a good harvest is probably August. If you wait any later than that and your clover may not have a chance to really do well. Starting your clover indoors is a great way to get them started a couple of weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

On average all chance of frost has passed is on April 15 in Fort Madison. It might get as low as -15°F during the coldest months of winter.

Keep in mind that USDA zone info for Fort Madison is an average and the actual date of last frost is different every year. Since half of the time in Fort Madison last frost occurs after April 15 be ready to cover your clover if you have a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Fort Madison

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 Fort Madison

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