Before planting it is a good idea to find your USDA Zone info to estimate your garden schedule. The most important data that the zone info tells us is average last frost and the lowest expected temperature for your area.

One way of making a decision about when it's the best time to plant balsam is to refer to the USDA zone info for Thief River Falls.

Planting Calendar for Balsam

Frost tolerance for balsam:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After the last frost.

Since balsam are not cold tolerant it is important to wait until after the last frost before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant balsam in Thief River Falls is May. However, you really should wait until June if you don't want to take any chances.

The last month that you can plant balsam and expect a good harvest is probably August. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your balsam may not have a chance to really do well. You can get started a couple of weeks earlier by starting your balsam indoors.

Last Frost Date

On average all chance of frost has passed is on May 15 in Thief River Falls. In the coldest months of winter you can expect an average low temperature of -35°F.

Always keep in mind that the actual date of last frost is just an average because it is based on the USDA zone info for Thief River Falls and it will vary from year to year. Since half of the time in Thief River Falls you get a frost after May 15 be ready to protect your balsam in the event of a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Thief River Falls

Here is the info for USDA Zone 3b.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	May 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	September 15
Lowest Expected Low	-35°F
Highest Expected Low	-30°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is -35°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near -30°F.

Plants to Grow in Thief River Falls

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Thief River Falls.