One of the first steps you take when you are determining 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.

You should be able to estimate when you can plant diascia by looking at the USDA zone info for Chester.

Planting Calendar for Diascia

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

You can plant diascia a bit earlier in the year because they are moderately cold tolerant.

The earliest that you can plant diascia in Chester 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 diascia and expect a good harvest is probably September. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your diascia may not have a chance to grow to maturity. Starting your diascia 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 Chester. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of 5°F.

It's important to remember that the actual date of last frost is just an average because it is based on the USDA zone info for Chester and it is different every year. Since half of the time in Chester you get surprised by a frost after April 15 be ready to cover your diascia in the event of a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Chester

Here is the info for USDA Zone 7b.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	April 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	October 15
Lowest Expected Low	5°F
Highest Expected Low	10°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 10°F.

Plants to Grow in Chester

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