When to Plant Columbine in Lock Haven, PA

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.

It's possible to estimate when it's the best time to plant columbine by reviewing the USDA zone info for Lock Haven.


Planting Calendar for Columbine

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

Columbine are one of those plants that can tolerate a little bit of cold weather which tells us that you can start planting them earlier than other frost tender plants.

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

The earliest that you can plant columbine in Lock Haven 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 columbine and expect a good harvest is probably September. Any later than that and your columbine may not have a chance to fully mature. If you are starting your columbine indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a couple of weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

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

Just be sure to remember that the actual date of last frost is just an average because it is based on the USDA zone info for Lock Haven and it can change quite a bit from year to year. Half of the time in Lock Haven you get surprised by a frost after April 15 so make sure that you are ready to protect your columbine in the event of a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Lock Haven

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 Lock Haven

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Lock Haven.