One of the first steps you take when you are making a decision about 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.

By looking at the USDA zone info for Iowa City it's a good idea to estimate when it's a good idea to plant nicotiana.

Planting Calendar for Nicotiana

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

It's not a good idea to plant nicotiana until after the last frost has passed because they require warm weather.

The earliest that you can plant nicotiana 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 nicotiana and expect a good harvest is probably August. If you wait any later than that and your nicotiana may not have a chance to grow to maturity. Starting your nicotiana indoors is a great way to get them started a little bit earlier.

Last Frost Date

In Iowa City the average date of last frost happens on April 15. You can expect an average low temperature of -15°F in the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Iowa City is just an average the actual date of last frost changes from year to year. Since half of the time in Iowa City there is a last frost after April 15 be ready to protect your nicotiana 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.