When to Plant Verbena in Philadelphia, PA

Before planting it is a good idea to find your USDA Zone info to figure out your garden schedule. The most important data that the zone info tells us is average last frost and the lowest expected temperature for your area.

The first opportunity to plant verbena in Philadelphia can be determined by using the USDA zone info.


Planting Calendar for Verbena

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

Since verbena do ok in moderate cold you can plant them just a tiny bit earlier in the year than other frost tender plants.

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

The earliest that you can plant verbena 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 verbena and expect a good harvest is probably August. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your verbena may not have a chance to grow to maturity. Starting your verbena indoors is a great way to get them started a few weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

On average all chance of frost has passed is on April 15 in Philadelphia. You should expect an average low temperature of 0°F in the coldest months of winter.

It's important to remember that the actual date of last frost is an average because it is based on the USDA zone info for Philadelphia and it is different every year. Half of the time in Philadelphia last frost occurs after April 15 so always be ready to protect your verbena 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 Low0°F
Highest Expected Low5°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.