The USDA Zone info is a great tool for gardeners to help us estimate your gardening 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 possible to estimate when it's a good idea to plant phlox by looking at the USDA zone info for Independence.

Planting Calendar for Phlox

Frost tolerance for phlox:	Tolerant of some frost.
When to plant:	Up to 5 weeks before last frost.

You can plant phlox a little bit earlier in the year because they are one of those plants that can tolerate a little bit of cold weather.

The earliest that you can plant phlox in Independence 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 phlox and expect a good harvest is probably September. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your phlox may not have a chance to grow to maturity. You can get started a couple of weeks earlier by starting your phlox indoors.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is April 15 in Independence. You can expect an average low temperature of -20°F in the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Independence may not be accurate from year to year the actual date of last frost can change quite a bit from year to year. Since half of the time in Independence it frosts late in the year after April 15 be ready to protect your phlox if you have one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Independence

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 Independence

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