One of the first steps you take when you are making a decision about 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.

In New Albany you can estimate when it's a good idea to plant lupine by referring to the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Lupine

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

Lupine can survive in moderate cold which tells us that you can plant them a little bit earlier in the year than other frost tender plants.

The earliest that you can plant lupine in New Albany 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 lupine and expect a good harvest is probably September. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your lupine may not have a chance to grow to maturity. You can get started a little bit earlier by starting your lupine indoors.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is April 15 in New Albany. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of 5°F.

Just be sure to remember that the actual date of last frost is not always accurate because it is based on the USDA zone info for New Albany and it will vary from year to year. Half of the time in New Albany it frosts late in the year after April 15 so always be ready to cover your lupine if you have one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for New Albany

Here is the info for USDA Zone 7b.

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

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

Plants to Grow in New Albany

You may be interested in your other planting guides for New Albany.