Before planting it is a good idea to find your USDA Zone info to estimate your garden schedule. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

One way of getting a good idea when it's the best time to plant poppies is to examine the USDA zone info for Chelsea.

Planting Calendar for Poppies

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

Poppies can survive in some cold which tells us 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 Chelsea 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 poppies and expect a good harvest is probably September. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your poppies may not have a chance to fully mature. You can get started a few weeks earlier by starting your poppies indoors.

Last Frost Date

In Chelsea the average date of last frost happens on March 15. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of 10°F.

Since the USDA zone info for Chelsea 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 Chelsea there is a last frost after March 15 so be sure to be ready to protect your poppies if you have a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Chelsea

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 Chelsea

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