One of the best tools that you have as gardeners to help us determine 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.

It's possible to estimate when it's a good idea to plant penstemon by reviewing the USDA zone info for Oberlin.

Planting Calendar for Penstemon

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

Penstemon do well in moderate cold which means that you can plant them a little bit earlier than plants that are more sensitive to the cold.

The earliest that you can plant penstemon in Oberlin 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 penstemon and expect a good harvest is probably September. Any later than that and your penstemon may not have a chance to grow to maturity. Starting your penstemon indoors is a great way to get them started a little bit earlier.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is April 15 in Oberlin. It might get as low as -10°F during the coldest months of winter.

Just be sure to remember that USDA zone info for Oberlin is just an average and the actual date of last frost can change quite a bit from year to year. Half of the time in Oberlin there is a last frost after April 15 so just be sure to be ready to cover your penstemon if you have a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Oberlin

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 Oberlin

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