One of the first steps you take when you are figuring out your gardening schedule is find your USDA Zone info. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

The best time to plant iberis in Virginia can be estimated by reviewing the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Iberis

Frost tolerance for iberis:	Tolerant of some frost.
When to plant:	Up to 5 weeks before last frost.

Since iberis are moderately cold tolerant you can plant them just a bit earlier in the year than other frost tender plants.

The earliest that you can plant iberis 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 iberis and expect a good harvest is probably August. Any later than that and your iberis may not have a chance to grow to maturity. You can get started a little bit earlier by starting your iberis indoors.

Last Frost Date

In Virginia the average date of last frost happens on May 15. You should expect an average low temperature of -35°F in the coldest months of winter.

Remember that USDA zone info for Virginia is an average and the actual date of last frost can change quite a bit from year to year. Since half of the time in Virginia there is a last frost after May 15 be ready to protect your iberis if you have a 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.