One of the best tools that you have as gardeners to help us determine your gardening schedule is the 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.

The earliest that you can plant oriental poppies in Richmond Hill can be estimated by referring to the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Oriental poppies

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

Oriental poppies do well in moderate cold which means that you can get them planted earlier than other plants that might not handle the cold.

The earliest that you can plant oriental poppies in Richmond Hill 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 oriental poppies and expect a good harvest is probably September. Any later than that and your oriental poppies may not have a chance to grow to maturity. If you are starting your oriental poppies indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a couple of weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

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

Since the USDA zone info for Richmond Hill is an average the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Half of the time in Richmond Hill last frost occurs after March 15 so just be sure to be ready to cover your oriental poppies in the event of a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Richmond Hill

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 Richmond Hill

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Richmond Hill.