Before planting it is a good idea to find your USDA Zone info to estimate your garden schedule. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

A common way of estimating when it's possible to plant zinnia is to refer to the USDA zone info for Ashland.

Planting Calendar for Zinnia

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

Since zinnia do not do well in cold weather you have to wait until after the last frost has passed before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant zinnia in Ashland 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 zinnia and expect a good harvest is probably August. Any later than that and your zinnia may not have a chance to really do well. Starting your zinnia indoors is a great way to get them started a couple of weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

In Ashland the average date of last frost happens on March 15. You can expect an average low temperature of 10°F in the coldest months of winter.

Remember that USDA zone info for Ashland may not be accurate from year to year and the actual date of last frost changes from year to year. Since half of the time in Ashland you get a frost after March 15 be ready to cover your zinnia if you have a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Ashland

Here is the info for USDA Zone 8a.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	March 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	November 15
Lowest Expected Low	10°F
Highest Expected Low	15°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 15°F.

Plants to Grow in Ashland

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