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

By using the USDA zone info for Charleroi you should be able to determine when to plant lupine.

Planting Calendar for Lupine

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

Since lupine are moderately cold tolerant you can plant them a little earlier in the year than more sensitive plants.

The earliest that you can plant lupine in Charleroi 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 lupine and expect a good harvest is probably September. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your lupine may not have a chance to fully mature. Starting your lupine indoors is a great way to get them started a few weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is April 15 in Charleroi. It might get as low as -5°F during the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Charleroi is just an average the actual date of last frost is different every year. Half of the time in Charleroi it frosts late in the year after April 15 so make sure that you are ready to cover your lupine if you have a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Charleroi

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 Charleroi

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