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.

By referring to the USDA zone info for Smithfield it's possible to estimate when it's the best time to plant iberis.

Planting Calendar for Iberis

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

Iberis tend to make it in mild cold which tells us that you can plant them a bit earlier in the year than other frost tender plants.

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

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is March 15 in Smithfield. You should expect an average low temperature of 10°F in the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Smithfield is an average the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Half of the time in Smithfield it frosts late in the year after March 15 so just be sure to be ready to protect your iberis in the event of a late frost.

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.