Before planting it is a good idea to find your USDA Zone info to figure out your garden schedule. 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 Waterloo you should be able to determine when it's the best time to plant cuphea.

Planting Calendar for Cuphea

Frost tolerance for cuphea:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After all chance of frost has passed.

You can not plant cuphea until after the last frost when the weather gets warmer because they do not do well in cold weather.

The earliest that you can plant cuphea in Waterloo 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 cuphea and expect a good harvest is probably August. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your cuphea may not have a chance to fully mature. You can get started a little bit earlier by starting your cuphea indoors.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is April 15 in Waterloo. It might get as low as -20°F during the coldest months of winter.

Keep in mind that USDA zone info for Waterloo is not always accurate and the actual date of last frost changes from year to year. Since half of the time in Waterloo last frost occurs after April 15 be ready to protect your cuphea if you have one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Waterloo

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 Waterloo

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