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.

A way of making a decision about when to plant chrysanthemums is to examine the USDA zone info for Bainbridge Island.

Planting Calendar for Chrysanthemums

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

Chrysanthemums can survive in very little cold which tells us that you can plant them slightly earlier in the year than plants that are more sensitive to the cold.

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

Last Frost Date

In Bainbridge Island the average date of last frost happens on March 15. You should expect an average low temperature of 15°F in the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Bainbridge Island is an average the actual date of last frost is different every year. Since half of the time in Bainbridge Island last frost occurs after March 15 be ready to protect your chrysanthemums in the event of a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Bainbridge Island

Here is the info for USDA Zone 8b.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	March 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	November 15
Lowest Expected Low	15°F
Highest Expected Low	20°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is 15°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near 20°F.

Plants to Grow in Bainbridge Island

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Bainbridge Island.