When to Plant Hibiscus in Ann Arbor, MI

One of the first steps you take when you are estimating 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.

You can determine when it's the best time to plant hibiscus in Ann Arbor by reviewing the USDA zone info.


Planting Calendar for Hibiscus

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

Since hibiscus require warm weather you really should wait until after the last frost has passed before you can plant them.

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Legend 
A good time to plant hibiscus
Possibly ok, but a risky time to plant hibiscus
Probably not a good time to plant hibiscus

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

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is April 15 in Ann Arbor. In the coldest months of winter you can expect an average low temperature of -10°F.

Always keep in mind that the actual date of last frost is just an average because it is based on the USDA zone info for Ann Arbor and it can change quite a bit from year to year. Half of the time in Ann Arbor you get surprised by a frost after April 15 so make sure that you are ready to protect your hibiscus in the event of one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Ann Arbor

Here is the info for USDA Zone 6a.

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

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is -10°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near -5°F.

Plants to Grow in Ann Arbor

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Ann Arbor.