Before planting it is a good idea to find your USDA Zone info to estimate your garden schedule. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

The USDA zone info for Willmar should be used to figure out when it's possible to plant pennisetum.

Planting Calendar for Pennisetum

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

Pennisetum tend to make it in some cold which tells us that you can plant them a bit earlier in the year than other plants that might not handle the cold.

The earliest that you can plant pennisetum in Willmar 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 pennisetum and expect a good harvest is probably August. Any later than that and your pennisetum may not have a chance to grow to maturity. Starting your pennisetum indoors is a great way to get them started a couple of weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

In Willmar 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 Willmar may not be accurate from year to year the actual date of last frost can change quite a bit from year to year. Half of the time in Willmar you get a frost after May 15 so be sure to be ready to protect your pennisetum in the event of a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Willmar

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 Willmar

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