Before planting it is a good idea to find your USDA Zone info to determine 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.

The USDA zone info for Virginia should be reffered to in order to determine when it's the best time to plant marigold.

Planting Calendar for Marigold

Frost tolerance for marigold:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After all chance of frost has passed.

Since marigold require warm weather you really should wait until after the last frost has passed before you can plant them.

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

The last month that you can plant marigold and expect a good harvest is probably August. If you wait any later than that and your marigold may not have a chance to grow to maturity. You can get started a few weeks earlier by starting your marigold 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.

Always keep in mind that USDA zone info for Virginia is not always accurate and the actual date of last frost is different every year. Half of the time in Virginia there is a last frost after May 15 so make sure that you are ready to protect your marigold 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.