Before planting it is a good idea to find your USDA Zone info to determine your garden schedule. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

The first opportunity to plant red hot pokers in Washington can be figured out by using the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Red Hot Pokers

Frost tolerance for red hot pokers:	Very tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	Up to 7 weeks before last frost.

Red Hot Pokers are very cold tolerant which means that you can start planting them much earlier than more sensitive plants.

The earliest that you can plant red hot pokers in Washington 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 red hot pokers and expect a good harvest is probably September. Any later than that and your red hot pokers may not have a chance to fully mature. You can get started a few weeks earlier by starting your red hot pokers indoors.

Last Frost Date

In Washington the average date of last frost happens on April 15. It might get as low as -15°F during the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Washington is just an average the actual date of last frost is different every year. Half of the time in Washington it frosts late in the year after April 15 so make sure that you are ready to cover your red hot pokers in the event of a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Washington

Here is the info for USDA Zone 5b.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	April 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	October 15
Lowest Expected Low	-15°F
Highest Expected Low	-10°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 -10°F.

Plants to Grow in Washington

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