One of the first steps you take when you are estimating your gardening schedule is find your USDA Zone info. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

A way of determining when it's the best time to plant tall phlox is to consult the USDA zone info for Winterset.

Planting Calendar for Tall Phlox

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

You can plant tall phlox a little earlier in the year because they are one of those plants that can tolerate a little bit of cold weather.

The earliest that you can plant tall phlox in Winterset 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 tall phlox and expect a good harvest is probably September. If you wait any later than that and your tall phlox may not have a chance to fully mature. If you are starting your tall phlox indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a little bit earlier.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is April 15 in Winterset. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of -20°F.

Keep in mind that the actual date of last frost is an average because it is based on the USDA zone info for Winterset and it will vary from year to year. Half of the time in Winterset last frost occurs after April 15 so always be ready to protect your tall phlox in the event of one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Winterset

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 Winterset

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