Before planting it is a good idea to find your USDA Zone info to figure out your garden schedule. The most important data that the zone info tells us is average last frost and the lowest expected temperature for your area.

A common way of determining when you can plant onions is to refer to the USDA zone info for Douglas.

Planting Calendar for Onions

Frost tolerance for onions:	Very tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	Up to 7 weeks before last frost.

Onions can survive in a bit of cold which tells us that you can plant them earlier in the year than more sensitive plants.

The earliest that you can plant onions in Douglas 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 onions and expect a good harvest is probably September. Any later than that and your onions may not have a chance to grow to maturity. You can get started a little bit earlier by starting your onions indoors.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is March 15 in Douglas. You should expect an average low temperature of 10°F in the coldest months of winter.

It's important to remember that USDA zone info for Douglas may not be accurate from year to year and the actual date of last frost changes from year to year. Since half of the time in Douglas it frosts late in the year after March 15 be ready to protect your onions if you have a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Douglas

Here is the info for USDA Zone 8a.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	March 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	November 15
Lowest Expected Low	10°F
Highest Expected Low	15°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 15°F.

Plants to Grow in Douglas

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