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

The best time to plant sunflowers in Carthage should be estimated by looking at the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Sunflowers

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

Since sunflowers require warm weather you really should wait until after the last frost before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant sunflowers in Carthage 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 sunflowers and expect a good harvest is probably August. Any later than that and your sunflowers may not have a chance to grow to maturity. Starting your sunflowers indoors is a great way to get them started a little bit earlier.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is March 15 in Carthage. You should expect an average low temperature of 15°F in the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Carthage may not be accurate from year to year the actual date of last frost changes from year to year. Half of the time in Carthage you get surprised by a frost after March 15 so make sure that you are prepared to protect your sunflowers if you have a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Carthage

Here is the info for USDA Zone 8b.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	March 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	November 15
Lowest Expected Low	15°F
Highest Expected Low	20°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is 15°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near 20°F.

Plants to Grow in Carthage

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