Before planting it is a good idea to find your USDA Zone info to estimate your garden schedule. The most important data that the zone info tells us is average last frost and the lowest expected temperature for your area.

A common way of figuring out when it's the best time to plant cosmos is to refer to the USDA zone info for Elizabethtown.

Planting Calendar for Cosmos

Frost tolerance for cosmos:	Tolerant of a very small amount of frost.
When to plant:	Up to 3 weeks before last frost.

Cosmos are barely cold tolerant which means that you can plant them slightly earlier than other frost tender plants.

The earliest that you can plant cosmos in Elizabethtown is March. However, you really should wait until April if you don't want to take any chances.

The last month that you can plant cosmos and expect a good harvest is probably August. If you wait any later than that and your cosmos may not have a chance to fully mature. Starting your cosmos indoors is a great way to get them started a couple of weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

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

Just be sure to remember that USDA zone info for Elizabethtown is just an average and the actual date of last frost is different every year. Since half of the time in Elizabethtown there is a last frost after April 15 be ready to cover your cosmos in the event of a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Elizabethtown

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 Elizabethtown

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