One of the best tools that you have as gardeners to help us figure out your gardening schedule is the 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.

A common way of estimating when it's possible to plant nasturtium is to refer to the USDA zone info for Alpena.

Planting Calendar for Nasturtium

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

Since nasturtium require warm weather it is necessary to wait until after all chance of frost has passed before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant nasturtium 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 nasturtium and expect a good harvest is probably August. Any later than that and your nasturtium may not have a chance to grow to maturity. You can get started a little bit earlier by starting your nasturtium indoors.

Last Frost Date

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

Remember that the actual date of last frost is not always accurate because it is based on the USDA zone info for Alpena and it is different every year. Half of the time in Alpena it frosts late in the year after April 15 so be sure to be ready to cover your nasturtium in the event of a 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.