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.

You can figure out when it's possible to plant tropical water plants in Ottumwa by referring to the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Tropical Water Plants

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

Tropical Water Plants require warm weather which tells us that it's important to wait until it warms up after the last frost before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant tropical water plants in Ottumwa 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 tropical water plants and expect a good harvest is probably August. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your tropical water plants may not have a chance to really do well. Starting your tropical water plants indoors is a great way to get them started a couple of weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

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

Remember that USDA zone info for Ottumwa is just an average and the actual date of last frost is different every year. Half of the time in Ottumwa last frost occurs after April 15 so make sure that you are prepared to cover your tropical water plants if you have a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Ottumwa

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 Ottumwa

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Ottumwa.