One of the first steps you take when you are figuring out your gardening schedule is find your USDA Zone info. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

In Shippensburg you can estimate when to plant skullcap by using the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Skullcap

Frost tolerance for skullcap:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After the last frost when the weather gets warmer.

Since skullcap are not cold tolerant it is necessary to wait until after the last frost has passed before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant skullcap in Shippensburg 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 skullcap and expect a good harvest is probably August. Any later than that and your skullcap may not have a chance to really do well. If you are starting your skullcap indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a couple of weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

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

Keep in mind that USDA zone info for Shippensburg is just an average and the actual date of last frost can change quite a bit from year to year. Half of the time in Shippensburg there is a last frost after April 15 so make sure that you are prepared to protect your skullcap in the event of a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Shippensburg

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 Low	0°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 Shippensburg

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