One of the first steps you take when you are making a decision about 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.

You should be able to figure out when to plant geranium by referring to the USDA zone info for Washington.

Planting Calendar for Geranium

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

It's not a good idea to plant geranium until after the last frost has passed because they require warm weather.

The earliest that you can plant geranium in Washington is April. However, you really should wait until May if you don't want to take any chances.

The last month that you can plant geranium and expect a good harvest is probably August. Any later than that and your geranium may not have a chance to fully mature. You can get started a little bit earlier by starting your geranium indoors.

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost is on April 15 in Washington. In the coldest months of winter you can expect an average low temperature of -15°F.

Since the USDA zone info for Washington may not be accurate from year to year the actual date of last frost can change quite a bit from year to year. Half of the time in Washington it frosts late in the year after April 15 so just be sure to be ready to cover your geranium if you have a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Washington

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 Washington

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