One of the best tools that you have as gardeners to help us determine your gardening schedule is the 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.

The USDA zone info for Alabaster should be used to estimate when to plant salvia.

Planting Calendar for Salvia

Frost tolerance for salvia:	Tolerant of a very small amount of frost.
When to plant:	Up to 3 weeks before last frost.

Salvia are barely cold tolerant which means that you can get them planted just a bit earlier than more sensitive plants.

The earliest that you can plant salvia in Alabaster 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 salvia and expect a good harvest is probably August. Any later than that and your salvia may not have a chance to fully mature. Starting your salvia indoors is a great way to get them started a couple of weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is March 15 in Alabaster. It might get as low as 10°F during the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Alabaster is not always accurate the actual date of last frost is different every year. Half of the time in Alabaster you get a frost after March 15 so make sure that you are prepared to protect your salvia in the event of a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Alabaster

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 Alabaster

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