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.

You will be able to estimate when to plant tagetes by checking out the USDA zone info for Rochester.

Planting Calendar for Tagetes

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

Since tagetes require warm weather you have to wait until after the last frost has passed before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant tagetes 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 tagetes and expect a good harvest is probably August. Any later than that and your tagetes may not have a chance to grow to maturity. If you are starting your tagetes indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a couple of weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

In Rochester the average date of last frost happens on April 15. It might get as low as -10°F during the coldest months of winter.

Always keep in mind that USDA zone info for Rochester is an average and the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Since half of the time in Rochester you get surprised by a frost after April 15 be ready to protect your tagetes in the event of one of those late frosts.

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.