Before planting it is a good idea to find your USDA Zone info to determine your garden schedule. The most important data that the zone info tells us is average last frost and the lowest expected temperature for your area.

One way of figuring out when to plant bougainvillea is to use the USDA zone info for Lake Geneva.

Planting Calendar for Bougainvillea

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

Since bougainvillea do not do well in cold weather it is necessary to wait until after all chance of frost has passed before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant bougainvillea in Lake Geneva 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 bougainvillea and expect a good harvest is probably August. If you wait any later than that and your bougainvillea may not have a chance to fully mature. If you are starting your bougainvillea indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a couple of weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

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

Since the USDA zone info for Lake Geneva is an average the actual date of last frost changes from year to year. Half of the time in Lake Geneva you get a frost after April 15 so be sure to be ready to protect your bougainvillea if you have one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Lake Geneva

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 Lake Geneva

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Lake Geneva.