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

A common way of determining when it's possible to plant ornamental grasses is to consult the USDA zone info for Rochester.

Planting Calendar for Ornamental Grasses

Frost tolerance for ornamental grasses:	Tolerant of a very small amount of frost.
When to plant:	Up to 3 weeks before last frost.

Ornamental Grasses are one of those plants that can tolerate a tiny bit of cold weather which means that you can plant them slightly earlier than other frost tender plants.

The earliest that you can plant ornamental grasses 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 ornamental grasses and expect a good harvest is probably August. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your ornamental grasses may not have a chance to really do well. Starting your ornamental grasses indoors is a great way to get them started a few weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

In Rochester the average date of last frost happens on May 15. It might get as low as -25°F during the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Rochester is an average the actual date of last frost is different every year. Since half of the time in Rochester last frost occurs after May 15 be ready to protect your ornamental grasses if you have a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Rochester

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 Rochester

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