When to Plant Coleus in Iowa Falls, IA

Before planting it is a good idea to find your USDA Zone info to estimate your garden schedule. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

By using the USDA zone info for Iowa Falls it's possible to estimate when it's the best time to plant coleus.


Planting Calendar for Coleus

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

It's not a good idea to plant coleus until after the last frost when the weather gets warmer because they do not do well in cold weather.

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

The earliest that you can plant coleus 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 coleus and expect a good harvest is probably August. Any later than that and your coleus may not have a chance to really do well. If you are starting your coleus indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a little bit earlier.

Last Frost Date

In Iowa Falls the average date of last frost happens on April 15. It might get as low as -20°F during the coldest months of winter.

Just be sure to remember that the actual date of last frost is just an average because it is based on the USDA zone info for Iowa Falls and it changes from year to year. Since half of the time in Iowa Falls you get a frost after April 15 be ready to protect your coleus in the event of one of those late frosts.

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.