One of the best tools that you have as gardeners to help us estimate your gardening schedule is the USDA zone info. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

The USDA zone info for Salem can be reviewed to estimate when it's possible to plant oregano.

Planting Calendar for Oregano

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

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

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

Last Frost Date

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

Just be sure to remember that the actual date of last frost is just an average because it is based on the USDA zone info for Salem and it changes from year to year. Half of the time in Salem there is a last frost after March 15 so just be sure to be ready to protect your oregano in the event of a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Salem

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 Salem

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