Before planting it is a good idea to find your USDA Zone info to determine your garden schedule. The most important data that the zone info tells us is average last frost and the lowest expected temperature for your area.

The USDA zone info for The Colony should be used to determine when you can plant cosmos.

Planting Calendar for Cosmos

Frost tolerance for cosmos:	Tolerant of a very small amount of frost.
When to plant:	Up to 3 weeks before last frost.

Cosmos do ok in mild cold which tells us that you can plant them a bit earlier in the year than plants that are more sensitive to the cold.

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

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost is on March 15 in The Colony. It might get as low as 10°F during the coldest months of winter.

Remember that USDA zone info for The Colony may not be accurate from year to year and the actual date of last frost can change quite a bit from year to year. Since half of the time in The Colony you get a frost after March 15 be ready to cover your cosmos if you have one of those late frosts.

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.