The USDA Zone info is a great tool for gardeners to help us estimate your gardening schedule. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

The USDA zone info for Richmond should be read to figure out when it's the best time to plant impatiens.

Planting Calendar for Impatiens

Frost tolerance for impatiens:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After the last frost.

Since impatiens require warm weather you must wait until after the last frost before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant impatiens in Richmond is April. However, you really should wait until May if you don't want to take any chances.

The last month that you can plant impatiens and expect a good harvest is probably August. Any later than that and your impatiens may not have a chance to fully mature. Starting your impatiens indoors is a great way to get them started a couple of weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

In Richmond the average date of last frost happens on April 15. It might get as low as -5°F during the coldest months of winter.

Keep in mind that the actual date of last frost is an average because it is based on the USDA zone info for Richmond and it changes from year to year. Since half of the time in Richmond you get a frost after April 15 be ready to protect your impatiens in the event of a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Richmond

Here is the info for USDA Zone 6b.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	April 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	October 15
Lowest Expected Low	-5°F
Highest Expected Low	0°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is -5°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near 0°F.

Plants to Grow in Richmond

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