Before planting it is a good idea to find your USDA Zone info to estimate your garden schedule. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

You will be able to estimate when it's a good idea to plant dahlia by checking out the USDA zone info for Bowie.

Planting Calendar for Dahlia

Frost tolerance for dahlia:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After the last frost when the weather gets warmer.

You should not plant dahlia until after the last frost has passed because they require warm weather.

The earliest that you can plant dahlia in Bowie 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 grow to maturity. If you are starting your dahlia indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a little bit earlier.

Last Frost Date

On average all chance of frost has passed is on April 15 in Bowie. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of 5°F.

Always keep in mind that the actual date of last frost may not be accurate from year to year because it is based on the USDA zone info for Bowie and it changes from year to year. Since half of the time in Bowie there is a last frost after April 15 be ready to cover your dahlia if you have a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Bowie

Here is the info for USDA Zone 7b.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	April 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	October 15
Lowest Expected Low	5°F
Highest Expected Low	10°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 10°F.

Plants to Grow in Bowie

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