One of the first steps you take when you are getting a good idea 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 Du Quoin you can determine when it's a good idea to plant zinnia by using the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Zinnia

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

Zinnia require warm weather which means that you must wait until it warms up after the last frost has passed before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant zinnia in Du Quoin 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 zinnia and expect a good harvest is probably August. If you wait any later than that and your zinnia may not have a chance to grow to maturity. Starting your zinnia indoors is a great way to get them started a few weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost is on April 15 in Du Quoin. In the coldest months of winter you can expect an average low temperature of -5°F.

Since the USDA zone info for Du Quoin may not be accurate from year to year the actual date of last frost changes from year to year. Half of the time in Du Quoin last frost occurs after April 15 so always be ready to cover your zinnia in the event of a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Du Quoin

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 Du Quoin

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Du Quoin.