When to Plant Helianthemum in East Lansing, MI

One of the best tools that you have as gardeners to help us estimate your gardening schedule is the 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 East Lansing should be figured out by reviewing 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.

Since helianthemum do well in moderate cold you can plant them a bit earlier in the year than other frost tender plants.

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

The earliest that you can plant helianthemum in East Lansing 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. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your helianthemum may not have a chance to grow to maturity. If you are starting your helianthemum indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a little bit earlier.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is April 15 in East Lansing. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of -15°F.

Keep in mind that the actual date of last frost is just an average because it is based on the USDA zone info for East Lansing and it can change quite a bit from year to year. Half of the time in East Lansing last frost occurs after April 15 so make sure that you are ready to cover your helianthemum in the event of a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for East Lansing

Here is the info for USDA Zone 5b.

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

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is -15°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near -10°F.

Plants to Grow in East Lansing

You may be interested in your other planting guides for East Lansing.