One of the first steps you take when you are estimating your gardening schedule is find your USDA Zone info. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

One way of getting a good idea when it's a good idea to plant zinnia is to consult the USDA zone info for Lapeer.

Planting Calendar for Zinnia

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

Since zinnia require warm weather you need to wait until after all chance of frost has passed before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant zinnia in Lapeer 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 zinnia and expect a good harvest is probably August. Any later than that and your zinnia may not have a chance to really do well. You can get started a few weeks earlier by starting your zinnia indoors.

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost when the weather gets warmer is on April 15 in Lapeer. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of -15°F.

Always keep in mind that USDA zone info for Lapeer is not always accurate and the actual date of last frost changes from year to year. Half of the time in Lapeer you get a frost after April 15 so make sure that you are ready to cover your zinnia if you have a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Lapeer

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 Lapeer

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