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

By referring to the USDA zone info for Sparta it's possible to estimate when it's the best time to plant firebush.

Planting Calendar for Firebush

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

It's not a good idea to plant firebush until after the last frost because they are not cold tolerant.

The earliest that you can plant firebush in Sparta 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 firebush and expect a good harvest is probably August. If you wait any later than that and your firebush may not have a chance to grow to maturity. If you are starting your firebush indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a couple of weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

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

Since the USDA zone info for Sparta is an average the actual date of last frost can change quite a bit from year to year. Half of the time in Sparta you get surprised by a frost after April 15 so be sure to be ready to cover your firebush if you have one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Sparta

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 Sparta

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