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

A way of determining when it's the best time to plant violets is to consult the USDA zone info for Philadelphia.

Planting Calendar for Violets

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

Violets tend to make it in some cold which tells us that you can plant them a little bit earlier in the year than more sensitive plants.

The earliest that you can plant violets in Philadelphia 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 violets and expect a good harvest is probably September. If you wait any later than that and your violets may not have a chance to grow to maturity. You can get started a few weeks earlier by starting your violets indoors.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is March 15 in Philadelphia. You can expect an average low temperature of 10°F in the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Philadelphia may not be accurate from year to year the actual date of last frost changes from year to year. Since half of the time in Philadelphia it frosts late in the year after March 15 be ready to protect your violets 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.