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.

The first chance to plant poppies in Anchorage should be figured out by checking out the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Poppies

Frost tolerance for poppies:	Tolerant of some frost.
When to plant:	Up to 5 weeks before last frost.

Poppies tend to make it in mild cold which means that you can plant them just a bit earlier in the year than other frost tender plants.

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

Last Frost Date

On average all chance of frost has passed is on May 15 in Anchorage. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of -25°F.

Since the USDA zone info for Anchorage is just an average the actual date of last frost can change quite a bit from year to year. Since half of the time in Anchorage it frosts late in the year after May 15 be ready to cover your poppies in the event of one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Anchorage

Here is the info for USDA Zone 4b.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	May 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	September 15
Lowest Expected Low	-25°F
Highest Expected Low	-20°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is -25°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near -20°F.

Plants to Grow in Anchorage

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