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.

The earliest that you can plant helianthemum in Benton Harbor should be figured out by looking at the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Helianthemum

Frost tolerance for helianthemum:	Tolerant of some frost.
When to plant:	Up to 5 weeks before last frost.

Helianthemum are moderately cold tolerant which means that you can plant them earlier than other plants that might not handle the cold.

The earliest that you can plant helianthemum in Benton Harbor is February. However, you really should wait until March if you don't want to take any chances.

The last month that you can plant helianthemum and expect a good harvest is probably September. If you wait any later than that and your helianthemum may not have a chance to really do well. You can get started a couple of weeks earlier by starting your helianthemum indoors.

Last Frost Date

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

It's important to remember that the actual date of last frost may not be accurate from year to year because it is based on the USDA zone info for Benton Harbor and it can change quite a bit from year to year. Half of the time in Benton Harbor you get surprised by a frost after April 15 so always be ready to protect your helianthemum in the event of a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Benton Harbor

Here is the info for USDA Zone 6b.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	April 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	October 15
Lowest Expected Low	-5°F
Highest Expected Low	0°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 0°F.

Plants to Grow in Benton Harbor

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Benton Harbor.