Before planting it is a good idea to find your USDA Zone info to determine your garden schedule. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

The earliest that you can plant zinnia in Raleigh should be estimated by reviewing the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Zinnia

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

Zinnia are not cold tolerant which means that it is important to wait until it warms up after the last frost has passed before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant zinnia in Raleigh 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. If you wait any later than that and your zinnia may not have a chance to grow to maturity. If you are starting your zinnia indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a little bit earlier.

Last Frost Date

In Raleigh the average date of last frost happens on April 15. In the coldest months of winter you can expect an average low temperature of 5°F.

Since the USDA zone info for Raleigh is not always accurate the actual date of last frost is different every year. Half of the time in Raleigh last frost occurs after April 15 so make sure that you are ready to protect your zinnia if you have one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Raleigh

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 Raleigh

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