One of the best tools that you have as gardeners to help us estimate your gardening schedule is the USDA zone info. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

One way of figuring out when it's a good idea to plant balsam is to check out the USDA zone info for Somersworth.

Planting Calendar for Balsam

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

Since balsam do not do well in cold weather you need to wait until after the last frost when the weather gets warmer before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant balsam in Somersworth 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 balsam and expect a good harvest is probably August. If you wait any later than that and your balsam may not have a chance to fully mature. Starting your balsam indoors is a great way to get them started a little bit earlier.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is April 15 in Somersworth. You should expect an average low temperature of -15°F in the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Somersworth is not always accurate the actual date of last frost can change quite a bit from year to year. Half of the time in Somersworth there is a last frost after April 15 so just be sure to be ready to protect your balsam if you have one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Somersworth

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 Somersworth

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