One of the first steps you take when you are estimating 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 USDA zone info for Oak Ridge can be reviewed to determine when to plant ornamental grasses.

Planting Calendar for Ornamental Grasses

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

You can plant ornamental grasses slightly earlier in the year because they are barely cold tolerant.

The earliest that you can plant ornamental grasses in Oak Ridge 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 ornamental grasses and expect a good harvest is probably August. If you wait any later than that and your ornamental grasses may not have a chance to grow to maturity. You can get started a couple of weeks earlier by starting your ornamental grasses indoors.

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost has passed is on April 15 in Oak Ridge. It might get as low as 5°F during the coldest months of winter.

Always keep in mind that USDA zone info for Oak Ridge is not always accurate and the actual date of last frost can change quite a bit from year to year. Since half of the time in Oak Ridge last frost occurs after April 15 be ready to cover your ornamental grasses in the event of a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Oak Ridge

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 Oak Ridge

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Oak Ridge.