Before planting it is a good idea to find your USDA Zone info to figure out your garden schedule. The most important data that the zone info tells us is average last frost and the lowest expected temperature for your area.

By checking out the USDA zone info for Opelika it's a good idea to estimate when to plant platycodon.

Planting Calendar for Platycodon

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

Since platycodon do ok in moderate cold you can plant them just a tiny bit earlier in the year than other plants that might not handle the cold.

The earliest that you can plant platycodon in Opelika 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 platycodon and expect a good harvest is probably August. If you wait any later than that and your platycodon may not have a chance to grow to maturity. You can get started a couple of weeks earlier by starting your platycodon indoors.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is March 15 in Opelika. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of 10°F.

Always keep in mind that the actual date of last frost is just an average because it is based on the USDA zone info for Opelika and it can change quite a bit from year to year. Half of the time in Opelika last frost occurs after March 15 so just be sure to be ready to protect your platycodon in the event of one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Opelika

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 Opelika

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