One of the best tools that you have as gardeners to help us estimate your gardening schedule is the 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.

By checking out the USDA zone info for Virginia it's a good idea to determine when you can plant arabis.

Planting Calendar for Arabis

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

Since arabis do well in cold you can plant them earlier in the year than more sensitive plants.

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

The last month that you can plant arabis and expect a good harvest is probably August. If you wait any later than that and your arabis may not have a chance to grow to maturity. Starting your arabis indoors is a great way to get them started a little bit earlier.

Last Frost Date

In Virginia the average date of last frost happens on May 15. It might get as low as -35°F during the coldest months of winter.

Remember that USDA zone info for Virginia is just an average and the actual date of last frost is different every year. Half of the time in Virginia it frosts late in the year after May 15 so make sure that you are ready to protect your arabis if you have a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Virginia

Here is the info for USDA Zone 3b.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	May 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	September 15
Lowest Expected Low	-35°F
Highest Expected Low	-30°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is -35°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near -30°F.

Plants to Grow in Virginia

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