One of the best tools that you have as gardeners to help us figure out your gardening schedule is the 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.

A common way of making a decision about when to plant violets is to examine the USDA zone info for Michigan City.

Planting Calendar for Violets

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

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

The earliest that you can plant violets in Michigan City 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 violets and expect a good harvest is probably September. If you wait any later than that and your violets may not have a chance to grow to maturity. Starting your violets indoors is a great way to get them started a couple of weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost is on April 15 in Michigan City. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of -10°F.

Since the USDA zone info for Michigan City may not be accurate from year to year the actual date of last frost can change quite a bit from year to year. Half of the time in Michigan City there is a last frost after April 15 so make sure that you are ready to cover your violets in the event of a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Michigan City

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 Michigan City

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Michigan City.