One of the first steps you take when you are getting a good idea 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.

One way of getting a good idea when it's the best time to plant fountain grass is to refer to the USDA zone info for Chelsea.

Planting Calendar for Fountain Grass

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

Fountain Grass tend to make it in mild cold which means that you can plant them a bit earlier in the year than more sensitive plants.

The earliest that you can plant fountain grass in Chelsea 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 fountain grass and expect a good harvest is probably August. Any later than that and your fountain grass may not have a chance to really do well. You can get started a little bit earlier by starting your fountain grass indoors.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is April 15 in Chelsea. You can expect an average low temperature of -5°F in the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Chelsea is just an average the actual date of last frost can change quite a bit from year to year. Since half of the time in Chelsea last frost occurs after April 15 be ready to cover your fountain grass if you have a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Chelsea

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 Chelsea

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