Before planting it is a good idea to find your USDA Zone info to figure out your garden schedule. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

The first chance to plant heliotrope in Big Rapids should be figured out by using the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Heliotrope

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

It's not a good idea to plant heliotrope until after all chance of frost has passed because they do not do well in cold weather.

The earliest that you can plant heliotrope in Big Rapids 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 heliotrope and expect a good harvest is probably August. If you wait any later than that and your heliotrope may not have a chance to fully mature. You can get started a few weeks earlier by starting your heliotrope indoors.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is April 15 in Big Rapids. You can expect an average low temperature of -20°F in the coldest months of winter.

Remember that USDA zone info for Big Rapids may not be accurate from year to year and the actual date of last frost is different every year. Half of the time in Big Rapids last frost occurs after April 15 so be sure to be ready to cover your heliotrope if you have a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Big Rapids

Here is the info for USDA Zone 5a.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	April 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	October 15
Lowest Expected Low	-20°F
Highest Expected Low	-15°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is -20°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near -15°F.

Plants to Grow in Big Rapids

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Big Rapids.