One of the first steps you take when you are getting a good idea your gardening schedule is find your USDA Zone info. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

The best time to plant tall phlox in Richmond can be figured out by using the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Tall Phlox

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

Tall Phlox are one of those plants that can tolerate a little bit of cold weather which means that you can get them planted earlier than other frost tender plants.

The earliest that you can plant tall phlox in Richmond is January. However, you really should wait until February if you don't want to take any chances.

The last month that you can plant tall phlox and expect a good harvest is probably October. Any later than that and your tall phlox may not have a chance to really do well. If you are starting your tall phlox 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 January 31 in Richmond. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of 30°F.

Since the USDA zone info for Richmond is an average the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Half of the time in Richmond there is a last frost after January 31 so make sure that you are prepared to cover your tall phlox if you have one of those late frosts.

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.