One of the first steps you take when you are estimating your gardening schedule is find your 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 Nebraska City can be looked at to determine when it's the best time to plant pennisetum.

Planting Calendar for Pennisetum

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

Pennisetum can survive in some cold which tells us that you can plant them slightly earlier in the year than other frost tender plants.

The earliest that you can plant pennisetum in Nebraska City 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 pennisetum and expect a good harvest is probably August. If you wait any later than that and your pennisetum may not have a chance to fully mature. If you are starting your pennisetum indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a little bit earlier.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is April 15 in Nebraska City. It might get as low as -15°F during the coldest months of winter.

Keep in mind that USDA zone info for Nebraska City is not always accurate and the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Since half of the time in Nebraska City you get surprised by a frost after April 15 be ready to protect your pennisetum in the event of a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Nebraska City

Here is the info for USDA Zone 5b.

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

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is -15°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near -10°F.

Plants to Grow in Nebraska City

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Nebraska City.