Before planting it is a good idea to find your USDA Zone info to determine your garden schedule. The most important data that the zone info tells us is average last frost and the lowest expected temperature for your area.

A common way of estimating when it's possible to plant sweet peas is to use the USDA zone info for Southern Pines.

Planting Calendar for Sweet Peas

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

Sweet Peas do well in very little 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 sweet peas in Southern Pines 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 sweet peas and expect a good harvest is probably August. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your sweet peas may not have a chance to really do well. If you are starting your sweet peas indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a little bit earlier.

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost when the weather gets warmer is on March 15 in Southern Pines. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of 10°F.

Always keep in mind that the actual date of last frost is just an average because it is based on the USDA zone info for Southern Pines and it is different every year. Half of the time in Southern Pines you get a frost after March 15 so just be sure to be ready to cover your sweet peas in the event of a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Southern Pines

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 Southern Pines

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Southern Pines.