When to Plant Balsam in Jersey Shore, PA

One of the first steps you take when you are figuring out your gardening schedule is find your USDA Zone info. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

The USDA zone info for Jersey Shore should be used to determine when to plant balsam.


Planting Calendar for Balsam

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

Balsam do not do well in cold weather which tells us that you need to wait until it warms up after the last frost has passed before you can plant them.

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Legend 
A good time to plant balsam
Possibly ok, but a risky time to plant balsam
Probably not a good time to plant balsam

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

Last Frost Date

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

Keep in mind that USDA zone info for Jersey Shore may not be accurate from year to year and the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Since half of the time in Jersey Shore there is a last frost after April 15 be ready to protect your balsam in the event of a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Jersey Shore

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 Jersey Shore

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Jersey Shore.