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

By referring to the USDA zone info for La Crosse it's possible to figure out when it's the best time to plant dahlia.

Planting Calendar for Dahlia

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

You should not plant dahlia until after the last frost has passed because they do not do well in cold weather.

The earliest that you can plant dahlia in La Crosse is May. However, you really should wait until June if you don't want to take any chances.

The last month that you can plant dahlia and expect a good harvest is probably August. Any later than that and your dahlia may not have a chance to fully mature. You can get started a few weeks earlier by starting your dahlia indoors.

Last Frost Date

In La Crosse the average date of last frost happens on May 15. In the coldest months of winter you can expect an average low temperature of -25°F.

Since the USDA zone info for La Crosse may not be accurate from year to year the actual date of last frost can change quite a bit from year to year. Half of the time in La Crosse it frosts late in the year after May 15 so make sure that you are ready to protect your dahlia if you have a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for La Crosse

Here is the info for USDA Zone 4b.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	May 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	September 15
Lowest Expected Low	-25°F
Highest Expected Low	-20°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is -25°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near -20°F.

Plants to Grow in La Crosse

You may be interested in your other planting guides for La Crosse.