One of the best tools that you have as gardeners to help us determine your gardening schedule is the USDA zone info. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

By reviewing the USDA zone info for Metropolis you should be able to estimate when to plant lobelia.

Planting Calendar for Lobelia

Frost tolerance for lobelia:	Very tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	Up to 7 weeks before last frost.

You can plant lobelia much earlier in the year because they do well in cold.

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

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost when the weather gets warmer is on April 15 in Metropolis. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of 0°F.

Remember that USDA zone info for Metropolis may not be accurate from year to year and the actual date of last frost is different every year. Since half of the time in Metropolis it frosts late in the year after April 15 be ready to cover your lobelia if you have a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Metropolis

Here is the info for USDA Zone 7a.

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

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

Plants to Grow in Metropolis

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