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 Columbia Falls you can determine when it's a good idea to plant skullcap by looking at the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Skullcap

Frost tolerance for skullcap:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After the last frost has passed.

It's probably a bad idea to plant skullcap until after all chance of frost has passed because they do not do well in cold weather.

The earliest that you can plant skullcap in Columbia Falls 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 skullcap and expect a good harvest is probably August. If you wait any later than that and your skullcap may not have a chance to fully mature. You can get started a little bit earlier by starting your skullcap indoors.

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost when the weather gets warmer is on April 15 in Columbia Falls. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of -20°F.

It's important to remember that the actual date of last frost may not be accurate from year to year because it is based on the USDA zone info for Columbia Falls and it is different every year. Half of the time in Columbia Falls you get surprised by a frost after April 15 so make sure that you are ready to cover your skullcap if you have a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Columbia Falls

Here is the info for USDA Zone 5a.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	April 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	October 15
Lowest Expected Low	-20°F
Highest Expected Low	-15°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is -20°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near -15°F.

Plants to Grow in Columbia Falls

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Columbia Falls.