One of the first steps you take when you are figuring out 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.

In Fort Atkinson you can estimate when it's the best time to plant marigold by reviewing the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Marigold

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

You can not plant marigold until after the last frost has passed because they are not cold tolerant.

The earliest that you can plant marigold in Fort Atkinson 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 marigold and expect a good harvest is probably August. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your marigold may not have a chance to fully mature. Starting your marigold indoors is a great way to get them started a couple of weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is April 15 in Fort Atkinson. It might get as low as -20°F during the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Fort Atkinson is an average the actual date of last frost changes from year to year. Since half of the time in Fort Atkinson there is a last frost after April 15 be ready to cover your marigold if you have one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Fort Atkinson

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 Fort Atkinson

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Fort Atkinson.