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 first chance to plant periwinkles in Philadelphia can be figured out by referring to the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Periwinkles

Frost tolerance for periwinkles:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After the last frost has passed.

You can not plant periwinkles until after the last frost because they require warm weather.

The earliest that you can plant periwinkles in Philadelphia 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 periwinkles and expect a good harvest is probably August. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your periwinkles may not have a chance to fully mature. Starting your periwinkles 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 Philadelphia. You can expect an average low temperature of 0°F in the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Philadelphia is not always accurate the actual date of last frost changes from year to year. Half of the time in Philadelphia you get a frost after April 15 so just be sure to be ready to cover your periwinkles if you have 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.