One of the best tools that you have as gardeners to help us estimate your gardening schedule is the USDA zone info. The most important data that the zone info tells us is average last frost and the lowest expected temperature for your area.

The first chance to plant poppies in Merrill should be figured out by referring to the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Poppies

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

Poppies are moderately cold tolerant which tells us that you can start planting them earlier than other plants that might not handle the cold.

The earliest that you can plant poppies in Merrill 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 poppies and expect a good harvest is probably August. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your poppies may not have a chance to grow to maturity. If you are starting your poppies indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a little bit earlier.

Last Frost Date

In Merrill the average date of last frost happens on May 15. You can expect an average low temperature of -30°F in the coldest months of winter.

Always keep in mind that USDA zone info for Merrill may not be accurate from year to year and the actual date of last frost changes from year to year. Since half of the time in Merrill it frosts late in the year after May 15 be ready to protect your poppies if you have one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Merrill

Here is the info for USDA Zone 4a.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	May 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	September 15
Lowest Expected Low	-30°F
Highest Expected Low	-25°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is -30°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near -25°F.

Plants to Grow in Merrill

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