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

One way of getting a good idea when it's a good idea to plant penstemon is to examine the USDA zone info for Ellwood City.

Planting Calendar for Penstemon

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

Penstemon can survive in some cold which tells us that you can plant them a little earlier in the year than more sensitive plants.

The earliest that you can plant penstemon in Ellwood City 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 penstemon and expect a good harvest is probably September. Any later than that and your penstemon may not have a chance to fully mature. Starting your penstemon indoors is a great way to get them started a little bit earlier.

Last Frost Date

In Ellwood City the average date of last frost happens on April 15. It might get as low as -10°F during the coldest months of winter.

Remember that USDA zone info for Ellwood City is an average and the actual date of last frost is different every year. Half of the time in Ellwood City it frosts late in the year after April 15 so be sure to be ready to protect your penstemon if you have one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Ellwood City

Here is the info for USDA Zone 6a.

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

Plants to Grow in Ellwood City

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Ellwood City.