One of the first steps you take when you are figuring out your gardening schedule is find your 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.

The USDA zone info for Iowa City should be read to estimate when it's a good idea to plant hibiscus.

Planting Calendar for Hibiscus

Frost tolerance for hibiscus:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After the last frost.

You can not plant hibiscus until after the last frost when the weather gets warmer because they do not do well in cold weather.

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

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is April 15 in Iowa City. You should expect an average low temperature of -15°F in the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Iowa City may not be accurate from year to year the actual date of last frost changes from year to year. Since half of the time in Iowa City last frost occurs after April 15 be ready to protect your hibiscus in the event of one of those late frosts.

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.