One of the best tools that you have as gardeners to help us figure out your gardening schedule is the USDA zone info. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

You should be able to determine when to plant gladiolus by checking out the USDA zone info for Zone 6a.

Planting Calendar for Gladiolus

Frost tolerance for gladiolus:	Tolerant of a very small amount of frost.
When to plant:	Up to 3 weeks before last frost.

Gladiolus do ok in moderate cold which tells us that you can get them planted just a bit earlier than other frost tender plants.

The earliest that you can plant gladiolus in Zone 6a 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 gladiolus and expect a good harvest is probably August. If you wait any later than that and your gladiolus may not have a chance to grow to maturity. Starting your gladiolus indoors is a great way to get them started a little bit earlier.

Last Frost Date

In Zone 6a the average date of last frost happens on April 15. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of -10°F.

Just be sure to remember that USDA zone info for Zone 6a may not be accurate from year to year and the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Half of the time in Zone 6a there is a last frost after April 15 so make sure that you are ready to cover your gladiolus if you have a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Zone 6a

Here is the info for USDA Zone 6a.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	April 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	October 15
Lowest Expected Low	-10°F
Highest Expected Low	-5°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is -10°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near -5°F.

Plants to Grow in Zone 6a

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Zone 6a.