Before planting it is a good idea to find your USDA Zone info to estimate your garden schedule. The most important data that the zone info tells us is average last frost and the lowest expected temperature for your area.

A way of figuring out when it's the best time to plant oriental poppies is to use the USDA zone info for Fargo.

Planting Calendar for Oriental poppies

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

Oriental poppies are moderately cold tolerant which means that you can plant them earlier than other frost tender plants.

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

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost when the weather gets warmer is on May 15 in Fargo. You can expect an average low temperature of -30°F in the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Fargo may not be accurate from year to year the actual date of last frost is different every year. Half of the time in Fargo you get a frost after May 15 so just be sure to be ready to cover your oriental poppies if you have a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Fargo

Here is the info for USDA Zone 4a.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	May 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	September 15
Lowest Expected Low	-30°F
Highest Expected Low	-25°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is -30°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near -25°F.

Plants to Grow in Fargo

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