Before planting it is a good idea to find your USDA Zone info to figure out your garden schedule. The most important data that the zone info tells us is average last frost and the lowest expected temperature for your area.

The USDA zone info for Dunkirk can be reffered to in order to determine when it's a good idea to plant osteospermum.

Planting Calendar for Osteospermum

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

Osteospermum are moderately cold tolerant which tells us that you can plant them earlier than more sensitive plants.

The earliest that you can plant osteospermum in Dunkirk 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 osteospermum and expect a good harvest is probably September. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your osteospermum may not have a chance to really do well. Starting your osteospermum indoors is a great way to get them started a little bit earlier.

Last Frost Date

In Dunkirk the average date of last frost happens on April 15. It might get as low as -5°F during the coldest months of winter.

Remember that USDA zone info for Dunkirk is just an average and the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Half of the time in Dunkirk you get a frost after April 15 so be sure to be ready to protect your osteospermum 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.