When to Plant Dahlias in South Plainfield, NJ

The USDA Zone info is a great tool for gardeners to help us figure out your gardening schedule. 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 South Plainfield can be looked at to estimate when to plant dahlias.


Planting Calendar for Dahlias

Frost tolerance for dahlias: Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant: After the last frost.

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

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Legend 
A good time to plant dahlias
Possibly ok, but a risky time to plant dahlias
Probably not a good time to plant dahlias

The earliest that you can plant dahlias in South Plainfield 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. Any later than that and your dahlias may not have a chance to grow to maturity. If you are starting your dahlias indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a couple of weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

In South Plainfield the average date of last frost happens on April 15. It might get as low as 0°F during the coldest months of winter.

Always keep in mind that USDA zone info for South Plainfield is not always accurate and the actual date of last frost is different every year. Half of the time in South Plainfield you get surprised by a frost after April 15 so make sure that you are ready to cover your dahlias if you have one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for South Plainfield

Here is the info for USDA Zone 7a.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)April 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)October 15
Lowest Expected Low0°F
Highest Expected Low5°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is 0°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near 5°F.

Plants to Grow in South Plainfield

You may be interested in your other planting guides for South Plainfield.