Sometime between next week and Halloween.
Experience tells me the first light frost comes about Oct 15th....and a killing frost at the end of October...
But...hey! it's Iowa....anything can happen!
Linda C

Right! Maybe get your blankets and styrofoam ready now. It's been a cool summer...

Blankets and styrofoam? But I'm not an advanced user. How should I find out what to do or how to do this frost protection thing?

We use old sheets and blankets to protect tender plants overnight when frost is forecast. The 10pm news will tell you if there's going to be a frost. Most often, you'll see people covering their tomatoes, petunias, begonias and impatiens, carrying in their potted plants or covering them. Whatever you want to preserve in active growing condition a little longer. Mums can be covered but can handle some frost so it's not as necessary with them. Tender bulbs/tubers such as calla lilies, glads or cannas can be left out for hard frosts to put them in dormant state so the foliage dies off, and then dig the bulbs before the ground freezes later in fall. Same with potatoes, carrots, etc., no need to dig them all now but get them out of the ground before they're froze in. HTH

I see you are trying birdhouse gourds. We just leave our picked gourds out next to the garage over winter and let them freeze, get moldy looking, etc, and clean them up the next year once they've dried. Then stain, finish or do whatever. Just didn't want you to get fooled by their rotten looks when they're drying.