When to Plant Alyssum in Columbia, PA

One of the first steps you take when you are figuring out 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.

The USDA zone info for Columbia can be looked at to figure out when it's a good idea to plant alyssum.


Planting Calendar for Alyssum

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

Since alyssum are one of those plants that can tolerate quite a bit of cold weather you can plant them a lot earlier in the year than other plants that might not handle the cold.

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Legend 
A good time to plant alyssum
Possibly ok, but a risky time to plant alyssum
Probably not a good time to plant alyssum

The earliest that you can plant alyssum in Columbia 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. Any later than that and your alyssum may not have a chance to fully mature. Starting your alyssum indoors is a great way to get them started a little bit earlier.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is April 15 in Columbia. It might get as low as -5°F during the coldest months of winter.

Remember that USDA zone info for Columbia may not be accurate from year to year and the actual date of last frost can change quite a bit from year to year. Since half of the time in Columbia it frosts late in the year after April 15 be ready to cover your alyssum if you have a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Columbia

Here is the info for USDA Zone 6b.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)April 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)October 15
Lowest Expected Low-5°F
Highest Expected Low0°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is -5°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near 0°F.

Plants to Grow in Columbia

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