One of the first steps you take when you are figuring out your gardening schedule is find your 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.

In Boston you can estimate when it's a good idea to plant santolina by checking out the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Santolina

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

Santolina are one of those plants that can tolerate quite a bit of cold weather which tells us that you can plant them much earlier than other frost tender plants.

The earliest that you can plant santolina in Boston 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 santolina and expect a good harvest is probably September. If you wait any later than that and your santolina may not have a chance to fully mature. If you are starting your santolina indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a few weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost has passed is on April 15 in Boston. In the coldest months of winter you can expect an average low temperature of -5°F.

Just be sure to remember that USDA zone info for Boston is just an average and the actual date of last frost is different every year. Half of the time in Boston there is a last frost after April 15 so be sure to be ready to protect your santolina in the event of one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Boston

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 Boston

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