One of the first steps you take when you are estimating 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.

One way of determining when you can plant calliopsis is to examine the USDA zone info for Iowa Falls.

Planting Calendar for Calliopsis

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

Calliopsis do not do well in cold weather which tells us that you must wait until it warms up after the last frost before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant calliopsis in Iowa Falls 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 calliopsis and expect a good harvest is probably August. If you wait any later than that and your calliopsis may not have a chance to fully mature. You can get started a couple of weeks earlier by starting your calliopsis indoors.

Last Frost Date

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

Since the USDA zone info for Iowa Falls may not be accurate from year to year the actual date of last frost is different every year. Since half of the time in Iowa Falls you get surprised by a frost after April 15 be ready to cover your calliopsis if you have a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Iowa Falls

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 Iowa Falls

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