When to Plant Diascia in Cambridge, MA

One of the first steps you take when you are estimating 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 diascia in Cambridge can be determined by using 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.

Since diascia do well in moderate cold you can plant them just a bit earlier in the year than other frost tender plants.

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

The earliest that you can plant diascia 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 diascia and expect a good harvest is probably September. If you wait any later than that and your diascia may not have a chance to really do well. 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

In Cambridge the average date of last frost happens on April 15. You can expect an average low temperature of -5°F in the coldest months of winter.

Remember that the actual date of last frost is not always accurate because it is based on the USDA zone info for Cambridge and it is different every year. Half of the time in Cambridge last frost occurs after April 15 so make sure that you are ready to cover your diascia 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.