One of the first steps you take when you are estimating your gardening schedule is find your USDA Zone info. 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 Alva should be reviewed to determine when it's possible 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 tend to make it in some cold which means that you can plant them just a bit earlier in the year than more sensitive plants.

The earliest that you can plant osteospermum in Alva 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. Any later than that and your osteospermum may not have a chance to grow to maturity. If you are starting your osteospermum indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a couple of weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

In Alva the average date of last frost happens on April 15. You can expect an average low temperature of -5°F in the coldest months of winter.

Always keep in mind that the actual date of last frost is just an average because it is based on the USDA zone info for Alva and it will vary from year to year. Half of the time in Alva it frosts late in the year after April 15 so always be ready to protect your osteospermum if you have one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Alva

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 Alva

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