One of the best tools that you have as gardeners to help us determine your gardening schedule is the 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 Philadelphia should be reviewed to figure out when it's possible to plant ornamental grasses.

Planting Calendar for Ornamental Grasses

Frost tolerance for ornamental grasses:	Tolerant of a very small amount of frost.
When to plant:	Up to 3 weeks before last frost.

Ornamental Grasses are barely cold tolerant which means that you can start planting them slightly earlier than other frost tender plants.

The earliest that you can plant ornamental grasses in Philadelphia is March. However, you really should wait until April if you don't want to take any chances.

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

Last Frost Date

In Philadelphia the average date of last frost happens on April 15. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of 0°F.

Always keep in mind that the actual date of last frost is an average because it is based on the USDA zone info for Philadelphia and it can change quite a bit from year to year. Since half of the time in Philadelphia last frost occurs after April 15 be ready to cover your ornamental grasses in the event of one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Philadelphia

Here is the info for USDA Zone 7a.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	April 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	October 15
Lowest Expected Low	0°F
Highest Expected Low	5°F

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

Plants to Grow in Philadelphia

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