One of the best tools that you have as gardeners to help us figure out your gardening schedule is the USDA zone info. 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 Madison should be reviewed to estimate when it's a good idea to plant ruby grass.

Planting Calendar for Ruby Grass

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

Ruby Grass do well in a tiny bit of cold which means that you can plant them just a tiny bit earlier in the year than other plants that might not handle the cold.

The earliest that you can plant ruby grass in Madison is March. However, you really should wait until April if you don't want to take any chances.

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

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost has passed is on March 15 in Madison. In the coldest months of winter you can expect an average low temperature of 10°F.

Always keep in mind that the actual date of last frost is an average because it is based on the USDA zone info for Madison and it will vary from year to year. Half of the time in Madison you get a frost after March 15 so always be ready to protect your ruby grass if you have a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Madison

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 Madison

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