One of the first steps you take when you are making a decision about 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.

The USDA zone info for Baltimore should be read to figure out when it's the best time to plant tagetes.

Planting Calendar for Tagetes

Frost tolerance for tagetes:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After the last frost.

Since tagetes do not do well in cold weather it's necessary to wait until after all chance of frost has passed before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant tagetes in Baltimore 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 tagetes and expect a good harvest is probably August. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your tagetes may not have a chance to grow to maturity. You can get started a few weeks earlier by starting your tagetes indoors.

Last Frost Date

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

Keep in mind that the actual date of last frost is not always accurate because it is based on the USDA zone info for Baltimore and it can change quite a bit from year to year. Half of the time in Baltimore it frosts late in the year after April 15 so just be sure to be ready to cover your tagetes in the event of one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Baltimore

Here is the info for USDA Zone 7b.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	April 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	October 15
Lowest Expected Low	5°F
Highest Expected Low	10°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 10°F.

Plants to Grow in Baltimore

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