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.

You can figure out when to plant zinnia in Bedford by reviewing the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Zinnia

Frost tolerance for zinnia:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After the last frost when the weather gets warmer.

You really shouldn't plant zinnia until after the last frost because they do not do well in cold weather.

The earliest that you can plant zinnia in Bedford 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 zinnia and expect a good harvest is probably August. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your zinnia may not have a chance to grow to maturity. Starting your zinnia indoors is a great way to get them started a couple of weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is April 15 in Bedford. You can expect an average low temperature of -10°F in the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Bedford is an average the actual date of last frost is different every year. Half of the time in Bedford last frost occurs after April 15 so make sure that you are ready to cover your zinnia in the event of a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Bedford

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 Bedford

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