One of the first steps you take when you are figuring out your gardening schedule is find your USDA Zone info. The most important data that the zone info tells us is average last frost and the lowest expected temperature for your area.

In Atlanta you can figure out when it's a good idea to plant beets by checking out the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Beets

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

You can plant beets just a bit earlier in the year because they are one of those plants that can tolerate a little bit of cold weather.

The earliest that you can plant beets in Atlanta 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 beets and expect a good harvest is probably September. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your beets may not have a chance to grow to maturity. If you are starting your beets indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a few weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

In Atlanta the average date of last frost happens on March 15. It might get as low as 10°F during the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Atlanta is an average the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Since half of the time in Atlanta it frosts late in the year after March 15 be ready to cover your beets in the event of a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Atlanta

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 Atlanta

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