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.

A way of estimating when to plant festuca is to look at the USDA zone info for Derby.

Planting Calendar for Festuca

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

Festuca are one of those plants that can tolerate a little bit of cold weather which tells us that you can plant them earlier than plants that are more sensitive to the cold.

The earliest that you can plant festuca in Derby 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 festuca and expect a good harvest is probably September. If you wait any later than that and your festuca may not have a chance to fully mature. Starting your festuca indoors is a great way to get them started a little bit earlier.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is April 15 in Derby. It might get as low as -5°F during the coldest months of winter.

Keep in mind that USDA zone info for Derby may not be accurate from year to year and the actual date of last frost can change quite a bit from year to year. Half of the time in Derby you get surprised by a frost after April 15 so make sure that you are prepared to cover your festuca if you have a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Derby

Here is the info for USDA Zone 6b.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	April 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	October 15
Lowest Expected Low	-5°F
Highest Expected Low	0°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is -5°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near 0°F.

Plants to Grow in Derby

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