One of the best tools that you have as gardeners to help us estimate your gardening schedule is the USDA zone info. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

In Berkley you can determine when it's possible to plant dianthus by referring to the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Dianthus

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

Dianthus tend to make it in mild cold which tells us that you can plant them a little earlier in the year than other frost tender plants.

The earliest that you can plant dianthus in Berkley 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 dianthus and expect a good harvest is probably September. If you wait any later than that and your dianthus may not have a chance to grow to maturity. Starting your dianthus indoors is a great way to get them started a little bit earlier.

Last Frost Date

On average all chance of frost has passed is on April 15 in Berkley. You should expect an average low temperature of -10°F in the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Berkley is not always accurate the actual date of last frost is different every year. Since half of the time in Berkley you get a frost after April 15 be ready to cover your dianthus if you have a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Berkley

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 Berkley

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