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

The USDA zone info for Mason City should be read to determine when to plant flax.

Planting Calendar for Flax

Frost tolerance for flax:	Tolerant of some frost.
When to plant:	Up to 5 weeks before last frost.

Flax do well in some cold which means that you can plant them a little earlier in the year than other frost tender plants.

The earliest that you can plant flax in Mason City is February. However, you really should wait until March if you don't want to take any chances.

The last month that you can plant flax and expect a good harvest is probably September. Any later than that and your flax may not have a chance to fully mature. Starting your flax indoors is a great way to get them started a few weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost is on April 15 in Mason City. You should expect an average low temperature of -20°F in the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Mason City is just an average the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Since half of the time in Mason City last frost occurs after April 15 be ready to protect your flax if you have a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Mason City

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 Mason City

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