When to Plant Gladiolus in Elizabethtown, KY

One of the first steps you take when you are figuring out your gardening schedule is find your 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.

The first chance to plant gladiolus in Elizabethtown can be figured out by using the USDA zone info.


Planting Calendar for Gladiolus

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

Gladiolus are barely cold tolerant which tells us that you can plant them slightly earlier than other plants that might not handle the cold.

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Legend 
A good time to plant gladiolus
Possibly ok, but a risky time to plant gladiolus
Probably not a good time to plant gladiolus

The earliest that you can plant gladiolus in Elizabethtown 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 gladiolus and expect a good harvest is probably August. Any later than that and your gladiolus may not have a chance to grow to maturity. You can get started a couple of weeks earlier by starting your gladiolus indoors.

Last Frost Date

In Elizabethtown the average date of last frost happens on April 15. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of -5°F.

Remember that the actual date of last frost is just an average because it is based on the USDA zone info for Elizabethtown and it will vary from year to year. Half of the time in Elizabethtown there is a last frost after April 15 so make sure that you are prepared to cover your gladiolus in the event of a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Elizabethtown

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 Low0°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 Elizabethtown

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