The USDA Zone info is a great tool for gardeners to help us figure out 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 earliest that you can plant poppies in Columbus should be figured out by reviewing the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Poppies

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

Since poppies are one of those plants that can tolerate a little bit of cold weather you can plant them a bit earlier in the year than more sensitive plants.

The earliest that you can plant poppies in Columbus 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 poppies and expect a good harvest is probably September. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your poppies may not have a chance to grow to maturity. Starting your poppies indoors is a great way to get them started a few weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

On average all chance of frost has passed is on March 15 in Columbus. It might get as low as 15°F during the coldest months of winter.

Always keep in mind that USDA zone info for Columbus is an average and the actual date of last frost can change quite a bit from year to year. Half of the time in Columbus it frosts late in the year after March 15 so make sure that you are prepared to cover your poppies if you have one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Columbus

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 Columbus

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