Before planting it is a good idea to find your USDA Zone info to figure out your garden schedule. 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 balloon flower in Rensselaer should be estimated by using the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Balloon Flower

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

You can plant balloon flower just a tiny bit earlier in the year because they are one of those plants that can tolerate a tiny bit of cold weather.

The earliest that you can plant balloon flower in Rensselaer 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 balloon flower and expect a good harvest is probably August. Any later than that and your balloon flower may not have a chance to fully mature. You can get started a little bit earlier by starting your balloon flower indoors.

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost is on April 15 in Rensselaer. It might get as low as -15°F during the coldest months of winter.

Just be sure to remember that USDA zone info for Rensselaer may not be accurate from year to year and the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Half of the time in Rensselaer last frost occurs after April 15 so make sure that you are prepared to cover your balloon flower if you have one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Rensselaer

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 Rensselaer

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