One of the best tools that you have as gardeners to help us determine your gardening schedule is the USDA zone info. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

A way of making a decision about when to plant phlox is to examine the USDA zone info for Huntsville.

Planting Calendar for Phlox

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

Phlox do well in moderate cold which means that you can start planting them earlier than plants that are more sensitive to the cold.

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

Last Frost Date

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

Always keep in mind that the actual date of last frost is an average because it is based on the USDA zone info for Huntsville and it will vary from year to year. Half of the time in Huntsville there is a last frost after April 15 so be sure to be ready to cover your phlox if you have a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Huntsville

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 Huntsville

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