When to Plant Dianthus in Cambridge, MA

Before planting it is a good idea to find your USDA Zone info to determine your garden schedule. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

The first opportunity to plant dianthus in Cambridge can be figured out by reviewing the USDA zone info.


Planting Calendar for Dianthus

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

Dianthus are moderately cold tolerant which tells us that you can plant them earlier than more sensitive plants.

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

The earliest that you can plant dianthus in Cambridge 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 dianthus and expect a good harvest is probably September. Any later than that and your dianthus may not have a chance to grow to maturity. If you are starting your dianthus 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 Cambridge. It might get as low as -5°F during the coldest months of winter.

Always keep in mind that the actual date of last frost is just an average because it is based on the USDA zone info for Cambridge and it changes from year to year. Since half of the time in Cambridge it frosts late in the year after April 15 be ready to protect your dianthus if you have a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Cambridge

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 Cambridge

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