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

By reviewing the USDA zone info for Pittsfield you should be able to estimate when it's a good idea to plant helianthemum.

Planting Calendar for Helianthemum

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

Helianthemum do well in a little bit of cold which tells us that you can plant them a little earlier in the year than more sensitive plants.

The earliest that you can plant helianthemum in Pittsfield 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 helianthemum and expect a good harvest is probably September. Any later than that and your helianthemum may not have a chance to really do well. You can get started a couple of weeks earlier by starting your helianthemum indoors.

Last Frost Date

On average all chance of frost has passed is on April 15 in Pittsfield. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of -15°F.

Since the USDA zone info for Pittsfield 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 Pittsfield last frost occurs after April 15 be ready to cover your helianthemum in the event of one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Pittsfield

Here is the info for USDA Zone 5b.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	April 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	October 15
Lowest Expected Low	-15°F
Highest Expected Low	-10°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is -15°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near -10°F.

Plants to Grow in Pittsfield

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