One of the first steps you take when you are estimating your gardening schedule is find your USDA Zone info. The most important data that the zone info tells us is average last frost and the lowest expected temperature for your area.

In Albuquerque you can determine when it's possible to plant columbine by reviewing the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Columbine

Frost tolerance for columbine:	Tolerant of some frost.
When to plant:	Up to 5 weeks before last frost.

Columbine do well in moderate cold which tells us that you can plant them earlier than more sensitive plants.

The earliest that you can plant columbine in Albuquerque is February. However, you really should wait until March if you don't want to take any chances.

The last month that you can plant columbine and expect a good harvest is probably September. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your columbine may not have a chance to fully mature. You can get started a few weeks earlier by starting your columbine indoors.

Last Frost Date

In Albuquerque the average date of last frost happens on April 15. You should expect an average low temperature of 5°F in the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Albuquerque may not be accurate from year to year the actual date of last frost is different every year. Half of the time in Albuquerque you get a frost after April 15 so make sure that you are ready to cover your columbine if you have one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Albuquerque

Here is the info for USDA Zone 7b.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	April 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	October 15
Lowest Expected Low	5°F
Highest Expected Low	10°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 10°F.

Plants to Grow in Albuquerque

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