One of the best tools that you have as gardeners to help us estimate 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.

You can figure out when it's the best time to plant scarlet runner beans in Richmond by referring to the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Scarlet Runner Beans

Frost tolerance for scarlet runner beans:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After the last frost has passed.

Since scarlet runner beans require warm weather you need to wait until after the last frost has passed before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant scarlet runner beans in Richmond 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 scarlet runner beans and expect a good harvest is probably September. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your scarlet runner beans may not have a chance to fully mature. Starting your scarlet runner beans indoors is a great way to get them started a couple of weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

In Richmond the average date of last frost happens on January 31. You should expect an average low temperature of 30°F in the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Richmond is an average the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Since half of the time in Richmond you get surprised by a frost after January 31 be ready to protect your scarlet runner beans if you have a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Richmond

Here is the info for USDA Zone 10a.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	January 31
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	December 15
Lowest Expected Low	30°F
Highest Expected Low	35°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is 30°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near 35°F.

Plants to Grow in Richmond

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