The USDA Zone info is a great tool for gardeners to help us determine your gardening 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 figuring out when it's possible to plant helianthemum is to refer to the USDA zone info for Albany.

Planting Calendar for Helianthemum

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

Helianthemum do well in moderate cold which means that you can get them planted earlier than more sensitive plants.

The earliest that you can plant helianthemum in Albany 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 helianthemum and expect a good harvest is probably September. If you wait any later than that and your helianthemum may not have a chance to fully mature. You can get started a few weeks earlier by starting your helianthemum indoors.

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost is on March 15 in Albany. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of 15°F.

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

USDA Zone Info for Albany

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 Albany

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