The USDA Zone info is a great tool for gardeners to help us figure out your gardening schedule. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

In Richmond you can determine when it's a good idea to plant carnation by reviewing the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Carnation

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

Carnation are very cold tolerant which tells us that you can plant them much earlier than other frost tender plants.

The earliest that you can plant carnation in Richmond 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 carnation and expect a good harvest is probably September. Any later than that and your carnation may not have a chance to grow to maturity. You can get started a couple of weeks earlier by starting your carnation indoors.

Last Frost Date

In Richmond the average date of last frost happens on April 15. You can expect an average low temperature of -10°F in the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Richmond may not be accurate from year to year the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Half of the time in Richmond last frost occurs after April 15 so always be ready to protect your carnation if you have a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Richmond

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 Richmond

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