One of the first steps you take when you are getting a good idea your gardening schedule is find your USDA Zone info. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

In Cambridge you can estimate when it's a good idea to plant balsam by looking at the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Balsam

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

Since balsam are not cold tolerant it's important to wait until after the last frost has passed before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant balsam in Cambridge 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 balsam and expect a good harvest is probably August. If you wait any later than that and your balsam may not have a chance to grow to maturity. Starting your balsam indoors is a great way to get them started a few weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost is on April 15 in Cambridge. In the coldest months of winter you can expect an average low temperature of 5°F.

It's important to remember that USDA zone info for Cambridge is just an average and the actual date of last frost can change quite a bit from year to year. Since half of the time in Cambridge there is a last frost after April 15 be ready to protect your balsam if you have a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Cambridge

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 Cambridge

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