Before planting it is a good idea to find your USDA Zone info to determine your garden schedule. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

By using the USDA zone info for Grafton it's possible to estimate when it's the best time to plant hollyhocks.

Planting Calendar for Hollyhocks

Frost tolerance for hollyhocks:	Tolerant of some frost.
When to plant:	Up to 5 weeks before last frost.

Since hollyhocks are moderately cold tolerant you can plant them a little bit earlier in the year than other plants that might not handle the cold.

The earliest that you can plant hollyhocks in Grafton is February. However, you really should wait until March if you don't want to take any chances.

The last month that you can plant hollyhocks and expect a good harvest is probably September. Any later than that and your hollyhocks may not have a chance to really do well. You can get started a little bit earlier by starting your hollyhocks indoors.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is April 15 in Grafton. In the coldest months of winter you can expect an average low temperature of -15°F.

Since the USDA zone info for Grafton is an average the actual date of last frost is different every year. Half of the time in Grafton there is a last frost after April 15 so make sure that you are prepared to cover your hollyhocks if you have one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Grafton

Here is the info for USDA Zone 5b.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	April 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	October 15
Lowest Expected Low	-15°F
Highest Expected Low	-10°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 -10°F.

Plants to Grow in Grafton

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