The USDA Zone info is a great tool for gardeners to help us determine your gardening schedule. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

A way of estimating when you can plant oenothera is to check out the USDA zone info for Durham.

Planting Calendar for Oenothera

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

Since oenothera do well in moderate cold you can plant them a little earlier in the year than more sensitive plants.

The earliest that you can plant oenothera in Durham 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 oenothera and expect a good harvest is probably September. Any later than that and your oenothera may not have a chance to really do well. Starting your oenothera indoors is a great way to get them started a few weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is April 15 in Durham. In the coldest months of winter you can expect an average low temperature of 5°F.

Since the USDA zone info for Durham 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 Durham you get a frost after April 15 so make sure that you are prepared to protect your oenothera in the event of one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Durham

Here is the info for USDA Zone 7b.

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

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

Plants to Grow in Durham

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