When to Plant Pincushion Flower in Chelsea, 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.

By looking at the USDA zone info for Chelsea it's possible to figure out when it's possible to plant pincushion flower.


Planting Calendar for Pincushion Flower

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

Since pincushion flower do well in moderate cold you can plant them a bit earlier in the year than plants that are more sensitive to the cold.

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

The earliest that you can plant pincushion flower in Chelsea 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 pincushion flower and expect a good harvest is probably September. Any later than that and your pincushion flower may not have a chance to grow to maturity. You can get started a few weeks earlier by starting your pincushion flower indoors.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is April 15 in Chelsea. It might get as low as -5°F during the coldest months of winter.

Just be sure to remember that USDA zone info for Chelsea is not always accurate and the actual date of last frost changes from year to year. Half of the time in Chelsea you get a frost after April 15 so just be sure to be ready to cover your pincushion flower in the event of 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 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 Chelsea

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