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.

The USDA zone info for Niles should be looked at to determine when to plant mimulus.

Planting Calendar for Mimulus

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

Since mimulus are not cold tolerant you have to wait until after the last frost before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant mimulus in Niles 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 mimulus and expect a good harvest is probably August. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your mimulus may not have a chance to really do well. You can get started a few weeks earlier by starting your mimulus indoors.

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost is on April 15 in Niles. You should expect an average low temperature of -10°F in the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Niles is an average the actual date of last frost can change quite a bit from year to year. Since half of the time in Niles there is a last frost after April 15 be ready to cover your mimulus in the event of a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Niles

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 Niles

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