When to Plant Calla Lily in Iowa City, IA

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.

The first chance to plant calla lily in Iowa City can be estimated by reviewing the USDA zone info.


Planting Calendar for Calla Lily

Frost tolerance for calla lily: Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant: After the last frost when the weather gets warmer.

It's a bad idea to plant calla lily until after the last frost when the weather gets warmer because they are not cold tolerant.

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Legend 
A good time to plant calla lily
Possibly ok, but a risky time to plant calla lily
Probably not a good time to plant calla lily

The earliest that you can plant calla lily in Iowa City 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 calla lily and expect a good harvest is probably August. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your calla lily may not have a chance to grow to maturity. You can get started a few weeks earlier by starting your calla lily indoors.

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost when the weather gets warmer is on April 15 in Iowa City. You should expect an average low temperature of -15°F in the coldest months of winter.

It's important to remember that USDA zone info for Iowa City is an average and the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Half of the time in Iowa City there is a last frost after April 15 so always be ready to protect your calla lily in the event of a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Iowa City

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 Iowa City

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Iowa City.