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.

In Abilene you can determine when it's the best time to plant diascia by looking at the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Diascia

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

You can plant diascia a little earlier in the year because they are moderately cold tolerant.

The earliest that you can plant diascia in Abilene 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 diascia and expect a good harvest is probably September. Any later than that and your diascia may not have a chance to grow to maturity. If you are starting your diascia indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a couple of weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

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

Since the USDA zone info for Abilene may not be accurate from year to year the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Half of the time in Abilene you get surprised by a frost after April 15 so be sure to be ready to cover your diascia in the event of a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Abilene

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 Abilene

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