When to Plant Hibiscus in State College, PA

Before planting it is a good idea to find your USDA Zone info to figure out your garden schedule. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

The USDA zone info for State College should be reviewed to figure out when to plant hibiscus.


Planting Calendar for Hibiscus

Frost tolerance for hibiscus: Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant: After all chance of frost has passed.

Since hibiscus do not do well in cold weather it is important to wait until after all chance of frost has passed before you can plant them.

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

The earliest that you can plant hibiscus in State College 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 hibiscus and expect a good harvest is probably August. Any later than that and your hibiscus may not have a chance to grow to maturity. If you are starting your hibiscus 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 State College. You should expect an average low temperature of -5°F in the coldest months of winter.

It's important to remember that USDA zone info for State College is not always accurate and the actual date of last frost can change quite a bit from year to year. Since half of the time in State College it frosts late in the year after April 15 be ready to cover your hibiscus in the event of a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for State College

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 Low0°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 State College

You may be interested in your other planting guides for State College.