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.

The USDA zone info for Athens should be read to figure out when it's possible to plant helianthemum.

Planting Calendar for Helianthemum

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

Since helianthemum are moderately cold tolerant you can plant them a little earlier in the year than other plants that might not handle the cold.

The earliest that you can plant helianthemum in Athens 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. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your helianthemum may not have a chance to grow to maturity. You can get started a couple of weeks earlier by starting your helianthemum indoors.

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost has passed is on March 15 in Athens. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of 10°F.

Remember that USDA zone info for Athens is just an average and the actual date of last frost changes from year to year. Since half of the time in Athens you get a frost after March 15 be ready to protect your helianthemum if you have one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Athens

Here is the info for USDA Zone 8a.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	March 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	November 15
Lowest Expected Low	10°F
Highest Expected Low	15°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is 10°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near 15°F.

Plants to Grow in Athens

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