Before planting it is a good idea to find your USDA Zone info to estimate 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.

A common way of determining when you can plant penstemon is to refer to the USDA zone info for Fort Scott.

Planting Calendar for Penstemon

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

Penstemon do ok in some cold which means that you can plant them just a bit earlier in the year than other frost tender plants.

The earliest that you can plant penstemon in Fort Scott 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 penstemon and expect a good harvest is probably September. Any later than that and your penstemon may not have a chance to fully mature. If you are starting your penstemon indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a little bit earlier.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is April 15 in Fort Scott. It might get as low as -5°F during the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Fort Scott is an average the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Half of the time in Fort Scott you get a frost after April 15 so make sure that you are prepared to protect your penstemon in the event of a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Fort Scott

Here is the info for USDA Zone 6b.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	April 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	October 15
Lowest Expected Low	-5°F
Highest Expected Low	0°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is -5°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near 0°F.

Plants to Grow in Fort Scott

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Fort Scott.