The USDA Zone info is a great tool for gardeners to help us determine your gardening schedule. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

In Sierra Vista you can figure out when it's a good idea to plant rudbeckia by using the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Rudbeckia

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

Since rudbeckia do well in moderate cold you can plant them a little earlier in the year than other frost tender plants.

The earliest that you can plant rudbeckia in Sierra Vista 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 rudbeckia and expect a good harvest is probably September. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your rudbeckia may not have a chance to really do well. If you are starting your rudbeckia indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a couple of weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is March 15 in Sierra Vista. In the coldest months of winter you can expect an average low temperature of 15°F.

Since the USDA zone info for Sierra Vista is just an average the actual date of last frost is different every year. Half of the time in Sierra Vista last frost occurs after March 15 so make sure that you are prepared to cover your rudbeckia in the event of a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Sierra Vista

Here is the info for USDA Zone 8b.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	March 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	November 15
Lowest Expected Low	15°F
Highest Expected Low	20°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is 15°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near 20°F.

Plants to Grow in Sierra Vista

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Sierra Vista.