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.

By using the USDA zone info for Happy Valley you will be able to determine when it's possible to plant columbine.

Planting Calendar for Columbine

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

Columbine are moderately cold tolerant which means that you can plant them earlier than other plants that might not handle the cold.

The earliest that you can plant columbine in Happy Valley 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 columbine and expect a good harvest is probably September. If you wait any later than that and your columbine may not have a chance to grow to maturity. If you are starting your columbine indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a few weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is March 15 in Happy Valley. You can expect an average low temperature of 15°F in the coldest months of winter.

It's important to remember that USDA zone info for Happy Valley is just an average and the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Half of the time in Happy Valley there is a last frost after March 15 so just be sure to be ready to cover your columbine in the event of one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Happy Valley

Here is the info for USDA Zone 8b.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	March 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	November 15
Lowest Expected Low	15°F
Highest Expected Low	20°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is 15°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near 20°F.

Plants to Grow in Happy Valley

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Happy Valley.