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

It's possible to determine when it's the best time to plant violas by reviewing the USDA zone info for Darien.

Planting Calendar for Violas

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

Violas can survive in pretty solid cold which means that you can plant them a lot earlier in the year than more sensitive plants.

The earliest that you can plant violas in Darien 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 violas and expect a good harvest is probably September. Any later than that and your violas may not have a chance to fully mature. If you are starting your violas indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a little bit earlier.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is April 15 in Darien. In the coldest months of winter you can expect an average low temperature of -15°F.

Always keep in mind that the actual date of last frost is just an average because it is based on the USDA zone info for Darien and it changes from year to year. Since half of the time in Darien you get surprised by a frost after April 15 be ready to cover your violas if you have a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Darien

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 Darien

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