One of the best tools that you have as gardeners to help us estimate 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 way of determining when it's the best time to plant marigold is to look at the USDA zone info for Bay City.

Planting Calendar for Marigold

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

It's a bad idea to plant marigold until after the last frost has passed because they do not do well in cold weather.

The earliest that you can plant marigold in Bay City is March. However, you really should wait until April if you don't want to take any chances.

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

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is February 15 in Bay City. You should expect an average low temperature of 20°F in the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Bay City may not be accurate from year to year the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Half of the time in Bay City you get surprised by a frost after February 15 so be sure to be ready to cover your marigold if you have a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Bay City

Here is the info for USDA Zone 9a.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	February 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	December 15
Lowest Expected Low	20°F
Highest Expected Low	25°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is 20°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near 25°F.

Plants to Grow in Bay City

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Bay City.