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

You should be able to estimate when to plant dahlias by referring to the USDA zone info for Smithfield.

Planting Calendar for Dahlias

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

Dahlias do not do well in cold weather which tells us that it's important to wait until it warms up after the last frost when the weather gets warmer before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant dahlias in Smithfield 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 dahlias and expect a good harvest is probably August. If you wait any later than that and your dahlias may not have a chance to fully mature. You can get started a couple of weeks earlier by starting your dahlias indoors.

Last Frost Date

In Smithfield the average date of last frost happens on March 15. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of 10°F.

It's important to remember that the actual date of last frost is just an average because it is based on the USDA zone info for Smithfield and it can change quite a bit from year to year. Since half of the time in Smithfield you get a frost after March 15 be ready to protect your dahlias in the event of one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Smithfield

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 Smithfield

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