Before planting it is a good idea to find your USDA Zone info to determine 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.

It's possible to figure out when it's the best time to plant tomatos by referring to the USDA zone info for Opelika.

Planting Calendar for Tomatos

Frost tolerance for tomatos:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After all chance of frost has passed.

Since tomatos do not do well in cold weather you really should wait until after the last frost has passed before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant tomatos in Opelika is April. However, you really should wait until May if you don't want to take any chances.

The last month that you can plant tomatos and expect a good harvest is probably August. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your tomatos may not have a chance to grow to maturity. You can get started a few weeks earlier by starting your tomatos 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.

Since the USDA zone info for Opelika is not always accurate the actual date of last frost can change quite a bit from year to year. Half of the time in Opelika last frost occurs after March 15 so make sure that you are prepared to protect your tomatos in the event of a surprise late frost.

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.