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.

The USDA zone info for Brookfield should be looked at to figure out when it's possible to plant penstemon.

Planting Calendar for Penstemon

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

Since penstemon do well in moderate cold you can plant them a little earlier in the year than other frost tender plants.

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

The last month that you can plant penstemon and expect a good harvest is probably September. If you wait any later than that and your penstemon may not have a chance to grow to maturity. You can get started a few weeks earlier by starting your penstemon indoors.

Last Frost Date

On average all chance of frost has passed is on April 15 in Brookfield. It might get as low as -10°F during the coldest months of winter.

Always keep in mind that USDA zone info for Brookfield is not always accurate and the actual date of last frost is different every year. Since half of the time in Brookfield there is a last frost after April 15 be ready to cover your penstemon if you have a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Brookfield

Here is the info for USDA Zone 6a.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	April 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	October 15
Lowest Expected Low	-10°F
Highest Expected Low	-5°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is -10°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near -5°F.

Plants to Grow in Brookfield

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