Before planting it is a good idea to find your USDA Zone info to figure out your garden schedule. The most important data that the zone info tells us is average last frost and the lowest expected temperature for your area.

One way of determining when you can plant pansies is to check out the USDA zone info for Gaithersburg.

Planting Calendar for Pansies

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

Pansies do well in quite a bit of cold which tells us that you can plant them quite a bit earlier in the year than more sensitive plants.

The earliest that you can plant pansies in Gaithersburg 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 pansies and expect a good harvest is probably September. If you wait any later than that and your pansies may not have a chance to fully mature. Starting your pansies indoors is a great way to get them started a few weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is April 15 in Gaithersburg. It might get as low as 0°F during the coldest months of winter.

Keep in mind that USDA zone info for Gaithersburg is just an average and the actual date of last frost can change quite a bit from year to year. Half of the time in Gaithersburg you get surprised by a frost after April 15 so make sure that you are prepared to cover your pansies if you have a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Gaithersburg

Here is the info for USDA Zone 7a.

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

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

Plants to Grow in Gaithersburg

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