One of the first steps you take when you are figuring out 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 Worcester you will be able to estimate when it's the best time to plant pansies.

Planting Calendar for Pansies

Frost tolerance for pansies:	Very tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	Up to 7 weeks before last frost.

Pansies do well in cold which tells us that you can get them planted much earlier than other plants that might not handle the cold.

The earliest that you can plant pansies in Worcester 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 pansies and expect a good harvest is probably September. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your pansies may not have a chance to grow to maturity. If you are starting your pansies indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a couple of weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

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

Since the USDA zone info for Worcester is just an average the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Half of the time in Worcester there is a last frost after April 15 so make sure that you are prepared to protect your pansies if you have a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Worcester

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 Worcester

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