One of the best tools that you have as gardeners to help us figure out 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.

One way of making a decision about when you can plant heliotrope is to consult the USDA zone info for Hermitage.

Planting Calendar for Heliotrope

Frost tolerance for heliotrope:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After the last frost.

Since heliotrope are not cold tolerant you really should wait until after all chance of frost has passed before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant heliotrope in Hermitage is April. However, you really should wait until May if you don't want to take any chances.

The last month that you can plant heliotrope and expect a good harvest is probably August. If you wait any later than that and your heliotrope may not have a chance to fully mature. Starting your heliotrope indoors is a great way to get them started a few weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is April 15 in Hermitage. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of -10°F.

Just be sure to remember that USDA zone info for Hermitage is an average and the actual date of last frost is different every year. Half of the time in Hermitage you get a frost after April 15 so be sure to be ready to cover your heliotrope in the event of one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Hermitage

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 Hermitage

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