The USDA Zone info is a great tool for gardeners to help us determine your gardening schedule. 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 it's a good idea to plant coleus is to check out the USDA zone info for Independence.

Planting Calendar for Coleus

Frost tolerance for coleus:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After the last frost.

Since coleus do not do well in cold weather it is important to wait until after all chance of frost has passed before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant coleus in Independence 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. Any later than that and your coleus may not have a chance to grow to maturity. Starting your coleus indoors is a great way to get them started a few weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost is on April 15 in Independence. You can expect an average low temperature of -10°F in the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Independence is just an average the actual date of last frost changes from year to year. Half of the time in Independence last frost occurs after April 15 so always be ready to protect your coleus in the event of a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Independence

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 Independence

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