One of the first steps you take when you are getting a good idea 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 South Milwaukee you can estimate when it's the best time to plant tall phlox by referring to the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Tall Phlox

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

Tall Phlox do well in moderate cold which means that you can plant them a little bit earlier than plants that are more sensitive to the cold.

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

Last Frost Date

In South Milwaukee the average date of last frost happens on April 15. It might get as low as -15°F during the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for South Milwaukee is not always accurate the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Half of the time in South Milwaukee you get surprised by a frost after April 15 so make sure that you are ready to protect your tall phlox if you have a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for South Milwaukee

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 South Milwaukee

You may be interested in your other planting guides for South Milwaukee.