One of the first steps you take when you are getting a good idea your gardening schedule is find your USDA Zone info. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

It's a good idea to figure out when it's the best time to plant bittercress by referring to the USDA zone info for Charlotte.

Planting Calendar for Bittercress

Frost tolerance for bittercress:	Tolerant of a very small amount of frost.
When to plant:	Up to 3 weeks before last frost.

You can plant bittercress a bit earlier in the year because they are barely cold tolerant.

The earliest that you can plant bittercress in Charlotte 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 bittercress and expect a good harvest is probably August. Any later than that and your bittercress may not have a chance to grow to maturity. Starting your bittercress indoors is a great way to get them started a little bit earlier.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is March 15 in Charlotte. It might get as low as 10°F during the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Charlotte may not be accurate from year to year the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Half of the time in Charlotte it frosts late in the year after March 15 so make sure that you are prepared to cover your bittercress if you have a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Charlotte

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 Charlotte

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