The USDA Zone info is a great tool for gardeners to help us determine your gardening schedule. The most important data that the zone info tells us is average last frost and the lowest expected temperature for your area.

In Philadelphia you can figure out when it's the best time to plant tropical hibiscus by checking out the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Tropical Hibiscus

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

It's a bad idea to plant tropical hibiscus until after all chance of frost has passed because they require warm weather.

The earliest that you can plant tropical hibiscus in Philadelphia is April. However, you really should wait until May if you don't want to take any chances.

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

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost has passed is on March 15 in Philadelphia. In the coldest months of winter you can expect an average low temperature of 10°F.

Since the USDA zone info for Philadelphia is an average the actual date of last frost can change quite a bit from year to year. Half of the time in Philadelphia it frosts late in the year after March 15 so make sure that you are ready to cover your tropical hibiscus if you have a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Philadelphia

Here is the info for USDA Zone 8a.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	March 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	November 15
Lowest Expected Low	10°F
Highest Expected Low	15°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 15°F.

Plants to Grow in Philadelphia

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