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 common way of getting a good idea when you can plant rudbeckia is to check out the USDA zone info for Cleveland.

Planting Calendar for Rudbeckia

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

Rudbeckia are one of those plants that can tolerate a little bit of cold weather which tells us that you can plant them earlier than more sensitive plants.

The earliest that you can plant rudbeckia in Cleveland 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 rudbeckia and expect a good harvest is probably September. Any later than that and your rudbeckia may not have a chance to fully mature. You can get started a couple of weeks earlier by starting your rudbeckia indoors.

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost has passed is on April 15 in Cleveland. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of 0°F.

Just be sure to remember that USDA zone info for Cleveland is not always accurate and the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Half of the time in Cleveland last frost occurs after April 15 so make sure that you are prepared to cover your rudbeckia if you have one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Cleveland

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 Low	0°F
Highest Expected Low	5°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 Cleveland

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