One of the first steps you take when you are determining 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 first chance to plant nigella in Cleveland should be determined by referring to the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Nigella

Frost tolerance for nigella:	Very tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	Up to 7 weeks before last frost.

Nigella do well in cold which means that you can get them planted much earlier than other plants that might not handle the cold.

The earliest that you can plant nigella in Cleveland 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 nigella and expect a good harvest is probably September. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your nigella may not have a chance to fully mature. Starting your nigella indoors is a great way to get them started a few weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost is on March 15 in Cleveland. You should expect an average low temperature of 10°F in the coldest months of winter.

It's important to remember that USDA zone info for Cleveland is just an average and the actual date of last frost is different every year. Half of the time in Cleveland you get surprised by a frost after March 15 so make sure that you are prepared to cover your nigella if you have a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Cleveland

Here is the info for USDA Zone 8a.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	March 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	November 15
Lowest Expected Low	10°F
Highest Expected Low	15°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 15°F.

Plants to Grow in Cleveland

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