Before planting it is a good idea to find your USDA Zone info to estimate 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.

In Newport you can determine when to plant spearmint by using the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Spearmint

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

Since spearmint do well in cold you can plant them earlier in the year than plants that are more sensitive to the cold.

The earliest that you can plant spearmint in Newport 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 spearmint and expect a good harvest is probably September. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your spearmint may not have a chance to really do well. You can get started a few weeks earlier by starting your spearmint indoors.

Last Frost Date

In Newport the average date of last frost happens on March 15. It might get as low as 15°F during the coldest months of winter.

It's important to remember that USDA zone info for Newport is just an average and the actual date of last frost can change quite a bit from year to year. Half of the time in Newport it frosts late in the year after March 15 so just be sure to be ready to protect your spearmint if you have one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Newport

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 Newport

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