One of the best tools that you have as gardeners to help us estimate your gardening schedule is the USDA zone info. The most important data that the zone info tells us is average last frost and the lowest expected temperature for your area.

You will be able to estimate when it's the best time to plant bee balm by reviewing the USDA zone info for Oswego.

Planting Calendar for Bee Balm

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

Since bee balm do ok in moderate cold you can plant them slightly earlier in the year than more sensitive plants.

The earliest that you can plant bee balm in Oswego 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 bee balm and expect a good harvest is probably August. If you wait any later than that and your bee balm may not have a chance to grow to maturity. Starting your bee balm indoors is a great way to get them started a little bit earlier.

Last Frost Date

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

Since the USDA zone info for Oswego is an average the actual date of last frost changes from year to year. Since half of the time in Oswego it frosts late in the year after April 15 be ready to cover your bee balm if you have one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Oswego

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 Oswego

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