One of the first steps you take when you are figuring out your gardening schedule is find your 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.

A common way of figuring out when to plant rudbeckia is to consult the USDA zone info for Chaska.

Planting Calendar for Rudbeckia

Frost tolerance for rudbeckia:	Tolerant of some frost.
When to plant:	Up to 5 weeks before last frost.

Since rudbeckia do well in moderate cold you can plant them a bit earlier in the year than plants that are more sensitive to the cold.

The earliest that you can plant rudbeckia in Chaska is March. However, you really should wait until April if you don't want to take any chances.

The last month that you can plant rudbeckia and expect a good harvest is probably August. If you wait any later than that and your rudbeckia may not have a chance to fully mature. Starting your rudbeckia indoors is a great way to get them started a couple of weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is May 15 in Chaska. You can expect an average low temperature of -25°F in the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Chaska is an average the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Since half of the time in Chaska there is a last frost after May 15 be ready to protect your rudbeckia if you have a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Chaska

Here is the info for USDA Zone 4b.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	May 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	September 15
Lowest Expected Low	-25°F
Highest Expected Low	-20°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is -25°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near -20°F.

Plants to Grow in Chaska

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