The USDA Zone info is a great tool for gardeners to help us estimate your gardening schedule. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

The best time to plant catharanthus in Rutland should be figured out by checking out the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Catharanthus

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

It's a bad idea to plant catharanthus until after the last frost when the weather gets warmer because they are not cold tolerant.

The earliest that you can plant catharanthus in Rutland 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 catharanthus and expect a good harvest is probably August. Any later than that and your catharanthus may not have a chance to fully mature. If you are starting your catharanthus indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a few weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

In Rutland the average date of last frost happens on April 15. In the coldest months of winter you can expect an average low temperature of -20°F.

Just be sure to remember that the actual date of last frost is an average because it is based on the USDA zone info for Rutland and it will vary from year to year. Half of the time in Rutland it frosts late in the year after April 15 so be sure to be ready to cover your catharanthus if you have a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Rutland

Here is the info for USDA Zone 5a.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	April 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	October 15
Lowest Expected Low	-20°F
Highest Expected Low	-15°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 -15°F.

Plants to Grow in Rutland

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