One of the first steps you take when you are getting a good idea your gardening schedule is find your 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 making a decision about when it's a good idea to plant begonias is to examine the USDA zone info for Dayton.

Planting Calendar for Begonias

Frost tolerance for begonias:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After all chance of frost has passed.

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

The earliest that you can plant begonias in Dayton 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 begonias and expect a good harvest is probably September. Any later than that and your begonias may not have a chance to really do well. You can get started a few weeks earlier by starting your begonias indoors.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is February 15 in Dayton. It might get as low as 20°F during the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Dayton is not always accurate the actual date of last frost changes from year to year. Half of the time in Dayton you get surprised by a frost after February 15 so be sure to be ready to cover your begonias in the event of a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Dayton

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 Dayton

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