One of the first steps you take when you are estimating your gardening schedule is find your USDA Zone info. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

One way of getting a good idea when it's the best time to plant chrysanthemum is to examine the USDA zone info for The Colony.

Planting Calendar for Chrysanthemum

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

Since chrysanthemum do not do well in cold weather it's necessary to wait until after the last frost has passed before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant chrysanthemum in The Colony 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 chrysanthemum and expect a good harvest is probably August. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your chrysanthemum may not have a chance to grow to maturity. You can get started a little bit earlier by starting your chrysanthemum indoors.

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost is on March 15 in The Colony. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of 10°F.

Since the USDA zone info for The Colony is an average the actual date of last frost changes from year to year. Half of the time in The Colony you get surprised by a frost after March 15 so always be ready to protect your chrysanthemum if you have a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for The Colony

Here is the info for USDA Zone 8a.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	March 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	November 15
Lowest Expected Low	10°F
Highest Expected Low	15°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is 10°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near 15°F.

Plants to Grow in The Colony

You may be interested in your other planting guides for The Colony.