One of the best tools that you have as gardeners to help us determine 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.

The first chance to plant phlox in Prior Lake should be estimated by using the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Phlox

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

Since phlox are moderately cold tolerant you can plant them a little earlier in the year than more sensitive plants.

The earliest that you can plant phlox in Prior Lake 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 phlox and expect a good harvest is probably August. If you wait any later than that and your phlox may not have a chance to fully mature. Starting your phlox indoors is a great way to get them started a little bit earlier.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is May 15 in Prior Lake. It might get as low as -25°F during the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Prior Lake is an average the actual date of last frost is different every year. Since half of the time in Prior Lake you get surprised by a frost after May 15 be ready to cover your phlox in the event of one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Prior Lake

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 Prior Lake

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Prior Lake.