Before planting it is a good idea to find your USDA Zone info to estimate 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 it's the best time to plant oriental poppies is to examine the USDA zone info for Jefferson City.

Planting Calendar for Oriental poppies

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

Oriental poppies are one of those plants that can tolerate a little bit of cold weather which tells us that you can plant them earlier than other frost tender plants.

The earliest that you can plant oriental poppies in Jefferson City 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 oriental poppies and expect a good harvest is probably September. If you wait any later than that and your oriental poppies may not have a chance to grow to maturity. Starting your oriental poppies indoors is a great way to get them started a few weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

In Jefferson City the average date of last frost happens on April 15. It might get as low as -10°F during the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Jefferson City is an average the actual date of last frost can change quite a bit from year to year. Half of the time in Jefferson City last frost occurs after April 15 so just be sure to be ready to cover your oriental poppies if you have a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Jefferson City

Here is the info for USDA Zone 6a.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	April 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	October 15
Lowest Expected Low	-10°F
Highest Expected Low	-5°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is -10°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near -5°F.

Plants to Grow in Jefferson City

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Jefferson City.