One of the best tools that you have as gardeners to help us figure out your gardening schedule is the USDA zone info. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

The best time to plant dahlias in Potsdam should be estimated by looking at the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Dahlias

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

You should not plant dahlias until after the last frost when the weather gets warmer because they are not cold tolerant.

The earliest that you can plant dahlias in Potsdam is May. However, you really should wait until June 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 fully mature. You can get started a couple of weeks earlier by starting your dahlias indoors.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is May 15 in Potsdam. You can expect an average low temperature of -25°F in the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Potsdam may not be accurate from year to year the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Half of the time in Potsdam it frosts late in the year after May 15 so make sure that you are prepared to protect your dahlias if you have a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Potsdam

Here is the info for USDA Zone 4b.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	May 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	September 15
Lowest Expected Low	-25°F
Highest Expected Low	-20°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is -25°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near -20°F.

Plants to Grow in Potsdam

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