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.

One way of estimating when it's the best time to plant caladium is to refer to the USDA zone info for Culpeper.

Planting Calendar for Caladium

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

It's probably not a good idea to plant caladium until after the last frost because they do not do well in cold weather.

The earliest that you can plant caladium in Culpeper 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 caladium and expect a good harvest is probably August. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your caladium may not have a chance to fully mature. You can get started a couple of weeks earlier by starting your caladium indoors.

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost has passed is on April 15 in Culpeper. You should expect an average low temperature of 0°F in the coldest months of winter.

It's important to remember that the actual date of last frost is just an average because it is based on the USDA zone info for Culpeper and it can change quite a bit from year to year. Since half of the time in Culpeper last frost occurs after April 15 be ready to cover your caladium in the event of one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Culpeper

Here is the info for USDA Zone 7a.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	April 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	October 15
Lowest Expected Low	0°F
Highest Expected Low	5°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is 0°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near 5°F.

Plants to Grow in Culpeper

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