The USDA Zone info is a great tool for gardeners to help us estimate your gardening schedule. 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 determining when you can plant dahlias is to consult the USDA zone info for North Platte.

Planting Calendar for Dahlias

Frost tolerance for dahlias:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After all chance of frost has passed.

Dahlias require warm weather which means that it's necessary to wait until it warms up after the last frost when the weather gets warmer before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant dahlias in North Platte 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 dahlias and expect a good harvest is probably August. If you wait any later than that and your dahlias may not have a chance to really do well. You can get started a little bit earlier by starting your dahlias indoors.

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost has passed is on April 15 in North Platte. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of -20°F.

Since the USDA zone info for North Platte may not be accurate from year to year the actual date of last frost changes from year to year. Half of the time in North Platte it frosts late in the year after April 15 so be sure to be ready to protect your dahlias in the event of a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for North Platte

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 North Platte

You may be interested in your other planting guides for North Platte.