When to Plant Dahlia in Melrose, MA

The USDA Zone info is a great tool for gardeners to help us figure out your gardening schedule. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

The earliest that you can plant dahlia in Melrose can be estimated by checking out the USDA zone info.


Planting Calendar for Dahlia

Frost tolerance for dahlia: Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant: After all chance of frost has passed.

You really shouldn't plant dahlia until after the last frost because they require warm weather.

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

The earliest that you can plant dahlia in Melrose is April. However, you really should wait until May if you don't want to take any chances.

The last month that you can plant dahlia and expect a good harvest is probably August. If you wait any later than that and your dahlia may not have a chance to fully mature. You can get started a little bit earlier by starting your dahlia indoors.

Last Frost Date

In Melrose 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.

Keep in mind that USDA zone info for Melrose is not always accurate and the actual date of last frost changes from year to year. Half of the time in Melrose you get a frost after April 15 so just be sure to be ready to protect your dahlia if you have a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Melrose

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 Melrose

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