One of the first steps you take when you are figuring out 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.

In Carbondale you can estimate when you can plant rudbeckia by reviewing the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Rudbeckia

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

Rudbeckia can survive in moderate cold which tells us that you can plant them a little bit earlier in the year than more sensitive plants.

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

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is April 15 in Carbondale. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of -5°F.

It's important to remember that USDA zone info for Carbondale may not be accurate from year to year and the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Half of the time in Carbondale it frosts late in the year after April 15 so make sure that you are ready to cover your rudbeckia if you have a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Carbondale

Here is the info for USDA Zone 6b.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	April 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	October 15
Lowest Expected Low	-5°F
Highest Expected Low	0°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is -5°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near 0°F.

Plants to Grow in Carbondale

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