One of the first steps you take when you are determining 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 Stoughton you can estimate when it's the best time to plant rudbeckia by using the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Rudbeckia

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

Since rudbeckia are moderately cold tolerant you can plant them a little earlier in the year than other frost tender plants.

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

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is April 15 in Stoughton. You can expect an average low temperature of -20°F in the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Stoughton is not always accurate the actual date of last frost is different every year. Since half of the time in Stoughton it frosts late in the year after April 15 be ready to cover your rudbeckia if you have a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Stoughton

Here is the info for USDA Zone 5a.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	April 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	October 15
Lowest Expected Low	-20°F
Highest Expected Low	-15°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is -20°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near -15°F.

Plants to Grow in Stoughton

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