When to Plant Dusty Miller in Vandalia, IL

One of the first steps you take when you are figuring out your gardening schedule is find your 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.

In Vandalia you can determine when to plant dusty miller by looking at the USDA zone info.


Planting Calendar for Dusty Miller

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

Since dusty miller are one of those plants that can tolerate quite a bit of cold weather you can plant them much earlier in the year than plants that are more sensitive to the cold.

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Legend 
A good time to plant dusty miller
Possibly ok, but a risky time to plant dusty miller
Probably not a good time to plant dusty miller

The earliest that you can plant dusty miller in Vandalia 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 dusty miller and expect a good harvest is probably September. If you wait any later than that and your dusty miller may not have a chance to fully mature. If you are starting your dusty miller indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a couple of weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

In Vandalia the average date of last frost happens on April 15. It might get as low as -10°F during the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Vandalia is not always accurate the actual date of last frost can change quite a bit from year to year. Half of the time in Vandalia you get a frost after April 15 so make sure that you are ready to cover your dusty miller in the event of a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Vandalia

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 Vandalia

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