One of the first steps you take when you are getting a good idea your gardening schedule is find your 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 estimating when you can plant coleus is to check out the USDA zone info for Dunkirk.

Planting Calendar for Coleus

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

Since coleus are not cold tolerant you really should wait until after all chance of frost has passed before you can plant them.

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

Last Frost Date

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

Keep in mind that the actual date of last frost may not be accurate from year to year because it is based on the USDA zone info for Dunkirk and it is different every year. Since half of the time in Dunkirk there is a last frost after April 15 be ready to protect your coleus if you have a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Dunkirk

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 Low	0°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 Dunkirk

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