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.

A way of getting a good idea when to plant purple coneflower is to use the USDA zone info for Gadsden.

Planting Calendar for Purple Coneflower

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

Purple Coneflower can survive in very little cold which means that you can plant them a bit earlier in the year than other frost tender plants.

The earliest that you can plant purple coneflower in Gadsden 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 purple coneflower and expect a good harvest is probably August. If you wait any later than that and your purple coneflower may not have a chance to grow to maturity. Starting your purple coneflower 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 March 15 in Gadsden. It might get as low as 10°F during the coldest months of winter.

Remember that the actual date of last frost is an average because it is based on the USDA zone info for Gadsden and it will vary from year to year. Since half of the time in Gadsden you get a frost after March 15 be ready to protect your purple coneflower if you have a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Gadsden

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 Gadsden

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