One of the best tools that you have as gardeners to help us figure out your gardening schedule is the USDA zone info. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

One way of figuring out when you can plant dahlia is to consult the USDA zone info for Great Bend.

Planting Calendar for Dahlia

Frost tolerance for dahlia:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After all chance of frost has passed.

You can not plant dahlia until after all chance of frost has passed because they are not cold tolerant.

The earliest that you can plant dahlia in Great Bend is April. However, you really should wait until May if you don't want to take any chances.

The last month that you can plant dahlia and expect a good harvest is probably August. If you wait any later than that and your dahlia may not have a chance to grow to maturity. If you are starting your dahlia indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a few weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is April 15 in Great Bend. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of -5°F.

Always keep in mind that the actual date of last frost is an average because it is based on the USDA zone info for Great Bend and it is different every year. Since half of the time in Great Bend there is a last frost after April 15 be ready to protect your dahlia in the event of a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Great Bend

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 Great Bend

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Great Bend.