When to Plant Mimulus in Watchung, NJ

Before planting it is a good idea to find your USDA Zone info to determine your garden schedule. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

By looking at the USDA zone info for Watchung it's possible to determine when it's the best time to plant mimulus.


Planting Calendar for Mimulus

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

You really shouldn't plant mimulus until after the last frost when the weather gets warmer because they require warm weather.

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

The earliest that you can plant mimulus in Watchung 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 mimulus and expect a good harvest is probably August. Any later than that and your mimulus may not have a chance to fully mature. If you are starting your mimulus indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a few weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is April 15 in Watchung. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of -5°F.

Since the USDA zone info for Watchung is just an average the actual date of last frost can change quite a bit from year to year. Since half of the time in Watchung you get surprised by a frost after April 15 be ready to cover your mimulus in the event of one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Watchung

Here is the info for USDA Zone 6b.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)April 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)October 15
Lowest Expected Low-5°F
Highest Expected Low0°F

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

Plants to Grow in Watchung

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