One of the first steps you take when you are figuring out your gardening schedule is find your USDA Zone info. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

By referring to the USDA zone info for Athens you should be able to determine when to plant hosta.

Planting Calendar for Hosta

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

Since hosta do well in moderate cold you can plant them just a bit earlier in the year than more sensitive plants.

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

Last Frost Date

In Athens the average date of last frost happens on April 15. It might get as low as 5°F during the coldest months of winter.

It's important to remember that USDA zone info for Athens may not be accurate from year to year and the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Half of the time in Athens there is a last frost after April 15 so make sure that you are ready to protect your hosta if you have one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Athens

Here is the info for USDA Zone 7b.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	April 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	October 15
Lowest Expected Low	5°F
Highest Expected Low	10°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is 5°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near 10°F.

Plants to Grow in Athens

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