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 Big Rapids you can determine when it's the best time to plant lithospermum by looking at the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Lithospermum

Frost tolerance for lithospermum:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After the last frost.

It's not a good idea to plant lithospermum until after the last frost because they are not cold tolerant.

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

Last Frost Date

In Big Rapids the average date of last frost happens on April 15. In the coldest months of winter you can expect an average low temperature of -20°F.

Keep in mind that USDA zone info for Big Rapids is not always accurate and the actual date of last frost can change quite a bit from year to year. Half of the time in Big Rapids it frosts late in the year after April 15 so always be ready to protect your lithospermum if you have one of those late frosts.

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.