Before planting it is a good idea to find your USDA Zone info to estimate your garden schedule. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

One way of estimating when you can plant pincushion flower is to check out the USDA zone info for Virginia.

Planting Calendar for Pincushion Flower

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

Pincushion Flower are one of those plants that can tolerate a little bit of cold weather which tells us that you can start planting them earlier than other frost tender plants.

The earliest that you can plant pincushion flower 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 pincushion flower and expect a good harvest is probably August. If you wait any later than that and your pincushion flower may not have a chance to really do well. Starting your pincushion flower indoors is a great way to get them started a few weeks 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.

Since the USDA zone info for Virginia may not be accurate from year to year the actual date of last frost can change quite a bit from year to year. Half of the time in Virginia it frosts late in the year after May 15 so just be sure to be ready to cover your pincushion flower in the event of 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.