One of the first steps you take when you are making a decision about 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.

You should be able to figure out when it's a good idea to plant bellis by using the USDA zone info for Alexandria.

Planting Calendar for Bellis

Frost tolerance for bellis:	Tolerant of some frost.
When to plant:	Up to 5 weeks before last frost.

Bellis are moderately cold tolerant which means that you can start planting them earlier than other frost tender plants.

The earliest that you can plant bellis in Alexandria 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 bellis and expect a good harvest is probably September. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your bellis may not have a chance to fully mature. You can get started a few weeks earlier by starting your bellis indoors.

Last Frost Date

In Alexandria the average date of last frost happens on April 15. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of -15°F.

Keep in mind that the actual date of last frost is just an average because it is based on the USDA zone info for Alexandria and it can change quite a bit from year to year. Half of the time in Alexandria last frost occurs after April 15 so make sure that you are ready to cover your bellis if you have a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Alexandria

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 Alexandria

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