One of the best tools that you have as gardeners to help us figure out your gardening schedule is the 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.

A common way of making a decision about when it's the best time to plant osteospermum is to examine the USDA zone info for Lexington.

Planting Calendar for Osteospermum

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

Since osteospermum do well in moderate cold you can plant them a little bit earlier in the year than more sensitive plants.

The earliest that you can plant osteospermum in Lexington 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 osteospermum and expect a good harvest is probably September. Any later than that and your osteospermum may not have a chance to really do well. If you are starting your osteospermum indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a few weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

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

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 Lexington and it is different every year. Half of the time in Lexington you get a frost after April 15 so make sure that you are ready to protect your osteospermum in the event of a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Lexington

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 Lexington

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