One of the best tools that you have as gardeners to help us figure out 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 first chance to plant begonias in Rochester should be figured out by looking at the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Begonias

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

Since begonias do not do well in cold weather you must wait until after all chance of frost has passed before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant begonias in Rochester 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 begonias and expect a good harvest is probably August. If you wait any later than that and your begonias may not have a chance to grow to maturity. You can get started a little bit earlier by starting your begonias indoors.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is April 15 in Rochester. You should expect an average low temperature of -10°F in the coldest months of winter.

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

USDA Zone Info for Rochester

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 Rochester

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