The USDA Zone info is a great tool for gardeners to help us figure out your gardening schedule. The most important data that the zone info tells us is average last frost and the lowest expected temperature for your area.

By referring to the USDA zone info for Crete it's possible to determine when it's the best time to plant hardy asters.

Planting Calendar for Hardy Asters

Frost tolerance for hardy asters:	Tolerant of a very small amount of frost.
When to plant:	Up to 3 weeks before last frost.

Hardy Asters do well in a tiny bit of cold which tells us that you can plant them a bit earlier in the year than other plants that might not handle the cold.

The earliest that you can plant hardy asters in Crete is March. However, you really should wait until April if you don't want to take any chances.

The last month that you can plant hardy asters and expect a good harvest is probably August. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your hardy asters may not have a chance to fully mature. You can get started a couple of weeks earlier by starting your hardy asters indoors.

Last Frost Date

In Crete the average date of last frost happens on April 15. You can expect an average low temperature of -15°F in the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Crete may not be accurate from year to year the actual date of last frost changes from year to year. Half of the time in Crete you get a frost after April 15 so be sure to be ready to cover your hardy asters if you have one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Crete

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 Crete

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