When to Plant Zinnia in Kinston, NC

One of the first steps you take when you are determining your gardening schedule is find your USDA Zone info. The most important data that the zone info tells us is average last frost and the lowest expected temperature for your area.

The first opportunity to plant zinnia in Kinston should be determined by looking at the USDA zone info.


Planting Calendar for Zinnia

Frost tolerance for zinnia: Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant: After the last frost.

Since zinnia are not cold tolerant it is important to wait until after the last frost when the weather gets warmer before you can plant them.

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Legend 
A good time to plant zinnia
Possibly ok, but a risky time to plant zinnia
Probably not a good time to plant zinnia

The earliest that you can plant zinnia in Kinston 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 zinnia and expect a good harvest is probably August. Any later than that and your zinnia may not have a chance to grow to maturity. You can get started a little bit earlier by starting your zinnia indoors.

Last Frost Date

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

Just be sure to remember that USDA zone info for Kinston may not be accurate from year to year and the actual date of last frost changes from year to year. Since half of the time in Kinston last frost occurs after March 15 be ready to cover your zinnia if you have a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Kinston

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 Low10°F
Highest Expected Low15°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 Kinston

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