When to Plant Dahlias in Lewistown, PA

One of the best tools that you have as gardeners to help us determine your gardening schedule is the 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.

A way of determining when to plant dahlias is to consult the USDA zone info for Lewistown.


Planting Calendar for Dahlias

Frost tolerance for dahlias: Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant: After the last frost when the weather gets warmer.

It's a bad idea to plant dahlias until after the last frost when the weather gets warmer because they require warm weather.

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

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

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost when the weather gets warmer is on April 15 in Lewistown. You should expect an average low temperature of -5°F in the coldest months of winter.

Always keep in mind that USDA zone info for Lewistown is just an average and the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Half of the time in Lewistown you get a frost after April 15 so always be ready to cover your dahlias if you have one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Lewistown

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 Low0°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 Lewistown

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