When to Plant Coleus in Zone 4b

One of the first steps you take when you are estimating your gardening schedule is find your 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.

It's a good idea to determine when to plant coleus by reviewing the USDA zone info for Zone 4b.


Planting Calendar for Coleus

Frost tolerance for coleus: Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant: After all chance of frost has passed.

Since coleus do not do well in cold weather you really should wait until after the last frost has passed before you can plant them.

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Legend 
A good time to plant coleus
Possibly ok, but a risky time to plant coleus
Probably not a good time to plant coleus

The earliest that you can plant coleus in Zone 4b 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 coleus and expect a good harvest is probably August. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your coleus may not have a chance to really do well. You can get started a little bit earlier by starting your coleus indoors.

Last Frost Date

On average all chance of frost has passed is on May 15 in Zone 4b. It might get as low as -25°F during the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Zone 4b is just an average the actual date of last frost can change quite a bit from year to year. Half of the time in Zone 4b last frost occurs after May 15 so always be ready to protect your coleus if you have a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Zone 4b

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 Zone 4b

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Zone 4b.