One of the first steps you take when you are figuring out 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.

In Zone 5b you can determine when it's a good idea to plant columbine by referring to the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Columbine

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

Since columbine do well in moderate cold you can plant them a little earlier in the year than other plants that might not handle the cold.

The earliest that you can plant columbine in Zone 5b 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 columbine and expect a good harvest is probably September. If you wait any later than that and your columbine may not have a chance to grow to maturity. Starting your columbine indoors is a great way to get them started a little bit earlier.

Last Frost Date

In Zone 5b the average date of last frost happens on April 15. You can expect an average low temperature of -15°F in the coldest months of winter.

Just be sure to remember that USDA zone info for Zone 5b is just an average and the actual date of last frost can change quite a bit from year to year. Since half of the time in Zone 5b it frosts late in the year after April 15 be ready to cover your columbine if you have a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Zone 5b

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 Zone 5b

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Zone 5b.