One of the first steps you take when you are getting a good idea your gardening schedule is find your USDA Zone info. 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 arctotis in Wilmington can be determined by reviewing the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Arctotis

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

Since arctotis do well in moderate cold you can plant them a little bit earlier in the year than more sensitive plants.

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

Last Frost Date

In Wilmington 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.

Always keep in mind that USDA zone info for Wilmington is an average and the actual date of last frost can change quite a bit from year to year. Half of the time in Wilmington you get a frost after March 15 so be sure to be ready to protect your arctotis in the event of a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Wilmington

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 Wilmington

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