One of the first steps you take when you are determining your gardening schedule is find your USDA Zone info. The most important data that the zone info tells us is average last frost and the lowest expected temperature for your area.

A way of getting a good idea when you can plant alyssum is to use the USDA zone info for Dover.

Planting Calendar for Alyssum

Frost tolerance for alyssum:	Very tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	Up to 7 weeks before last frost.

You can plant alyssum much earlier in the year because they are one of those plants that can tolerate quite a bit of cold weather.

The earliest that you can plant alyssum in Dover 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 alyssum and expect a good harvest is probably September. If you wait any later than that and your alyssum may not have a chance to really do well. If you are starting your alyssum indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a little bit earlier.

Last Frost Date

In Dover the average date of last frost happens on April 15. In the coldest months of winter you can expect an average low temperature of -10°F.

Since the USDA zone info for Dover is not always accurate the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Since half of the time in Dover there is a last frost after April 15 be ready to cover your alyssum in the event of a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Dover

Here is the info for USDA Zone 6a.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	April 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	October 15
Lowest Expected Low	-10°F
Highest Expected Low	-5°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 -5°F.

Plants to Grow in Dover

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