Before planting it is a good idea to find your USDA Zone info to estimate 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.

In Auburn you can determine when it's a good idea to plant melampodium by looking at the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Melampodium

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

You should not plant melampodium until after the last frost because they are not cold tolerant.

The earliest that you can plant melampodium in Auburn 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 melampodium and expect a good harvest is probably August. If you wait any later than that and your melampodium may not have a chance to fully mature. You can get started a few weeks earlier by starting your melampodium indoors.

Last Frost Date

In Auburn the average date of last frost happens on April 15. It might get as low as -10°F during the coldest months of winter.

Remember that USDA zone info for Auburn is an average and the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Since half of the time in Auburn there is a last frost after April 15 be ready to protect your melampodium in the event of one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Auburn

Here is the info for USDA Zone 6a.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	April 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	October 15
Lowest Expected Low	-10°F
Highest Expected Low	-5°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is -10°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near -5°F.

Plants to Grow in Auburn

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