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.

The first chance to plant santolina in Elkhart should be determined by looking at the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Santolina

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

Since santolina are very cold tolerant you can plant them quite a bit earlier in the year than other plants that might not handle the cold.

The earliest that you can plant santolina in Elkhart 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 santolina and expect a good harvest is probably September. Any later than that and your santolina may not have a chance to fully mature. You can get started a few weeks earlier by starting your santolina indoors.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is April 15 in Elkhart. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of -10°F.

Always keep in mind that the actual date of last frost is not always accurate because it is based on the USDA zone info for Elkhart and it is different every year. Since half of the time in Elkhart last frost occurs after April 15 be ready to cover your santolina if you have one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Elkhart

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 Elkhart

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