One of the first steps you take when you are figuring out 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.

The first opportunity to plant dahlias in Rochester can be figured out by using 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 can not plant dahlias until after all chance of frost has passed because they require warm weather.

The earliest that you can plant dahlias in Rochester 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 dahlias and expect a good harvest is probably August. Any later than that and your dahlias may not have a chance to really do well. You can get started a few weeks earlier by starting your dahlias indoors.

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost is on April 15 in Rochester. It might get as low as -10°F during the coldest months of winter.

Keep in mind that USDA zone info for Rochester is not always accurate and the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Half of the time in Rochester you get surprised by a frost after April 15 so make sure that you are ready to cover your dahlias in the event of a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Rochester

Here is the info for USDA Zone 6a.

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

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is -10°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near -5°F.

Plants to Grow in Rochester

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