One of the first steps you take when you are getting a good idea 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.

One way of making a decision about when it's a good idea to plant ageratum is to use the USDA zone info for Alpena.

Planting Calendar for Ageratum

Frost tolerance for ageratum:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After the last frost when the weather gets warmer.

Since ageratum do not do well in cold weather you need to wait until after all chance of frost has passed before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant ageratum in Alpena 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 ageratum and expect a good harvest is probably August. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your ageratum may not have a chance to really do well. Starting your ageratum indoors is a great way to get them started a couple of weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

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

Since the USDA zone info for Alpena may not be accurate from year to year the actual date of last frost is different every year. Since half of the time in Alpena it frosts late in the year after April 15 be ready to protect your ageratum if you have a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Alpena

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 Alpena

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