When to Plant Cardinal Flower in West Chester, 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.

The earliest that you can plant cardinal flower in West Chester should be estimated by checking out the USDA zone info.


Planting Calendar for Cardinal Flower

Frost tolerance for cardinal flower: Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant: After all chance of frost has passed.

Since cardinal flower require warm weather it is important to wait until after the last frost has passed before you can plant them.

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

The earliest that you can plant cardinal flower in West Chester 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 cardinal flower and expect a good harvest is probably August. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your cardinal flower may not have a chance to fully mature. Starting your cardinal flower indoors is a great way to get them started a few weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is April 15 in West Chester. It might get as low as -5°F during the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for West Chester may not be accurate from year to year the actual date of last frost changes from year to year. Half of the time in West Chester you get surprised by a frost after April 15 so make sure that you are prepared to protect your cardinal flower in the event of a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for West Chester

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 West Chester

You may be interested in your other planting guides for West Chester.