When to Plant Dahlia in Newport, RI

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

The USDA zone info for Newport can be looked at to figure out when it's a good idea to plant dahlia.


Planting Calendar for Dahlia

Frost tolerance for dahlia: Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant: After the last frost has passed.

Dahlia do not do well in cold weather which tells us that you really should wait until it warms up after the last frost before you can plant them.

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

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

Last Frost Date

In Newport the average date of last frost happens on April 15. It might get as low as 0°F during the coldest months of winter.

Always keep in mind that USDA zone info for Newport may not be accurate from year to year and the actual date of last frost changes from year to year. Half of the time in Newport you get a frost after April 15 so always be ready to protect your dahlia if you have one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Newport

Here is the info for USDA Zone 7a.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)April 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)October 15
Lowest Expected Low0°F
Highest Expected Low5°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is 0°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near 5°F.

Plants to Grow in Newport

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