The USDA Zone info is a great tool for gardeners to help us estimate your gardening schedule. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

A common way of getting a good idea when it's a good idea to plant hardy asters is to refer to the USDA zone info for Ligonier.

Planting Calendar for Hardy Asters

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

Hardy Asters do well in very little cold which tells us that you can plant them a bit earlier in the year than plants that are more sensitive to the cold.

The earliest that you can plant hardy asters in Ligonier 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 hardy asters and expect a good harvest is probably August. Any later than that and your hardy asters may not have a chance to grow to maturity. Starting your hardy asters indoors is a great way to get them started a few weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

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

Since the USDA zone info for Ligonier is just an average the actual date of last frost can change quite a bit from year to year. Since half of the time in Ligonier there is a last frost after April 15 be ready to cover your hardy asters if you have a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Ligonier

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 Ligonier

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