Before planting it is a good idea to find your USDA Zone info to estimate your garden schedule. The most important data that the zone info tells us is average last frost and the lowest expected temperature for your area.

It's a good idea to figure out when it's a good idea to plant pansies by referring to the USDA zone info for Grinnell.

Planting Calendar for Pansies

Frost tolerance for pansies:	Very tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	Up to 7 weeks before last frost.

Pansies do ok in quite a bit of cold which tells us that you can plant them earlier in the year than more sensitive plants.

The earliest that you can plant pansies in Grinnell is February. However, you really should wait until March if you don't want to take any chances.

The last month that you can plant pansies and expect a good harvest is probably September. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your pansies may not have a chance to grow to maturity. Starting your pansies indoors is a great way to get them started a few weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is April 15 in Grinnell. It might get as low as -20°F during the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Grinnell may not be accurate from year to year the actual date of last frost changes from year to year. Half of the time in Grinnell you get surprised by a frost after April 15 so make sure that you are prepared to cover your pansies in the event of one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Grinnell

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 Grinnell

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Grinnell.