Before planting it is a good idea to find your USDA Zone info to estimate 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.

A way of figuring out when to plant penstemon is to use the USDA zone info for Florence.

Planting Calendar for Penstemon

Frost tolerance for penstemon:	Tolerant of some frost.
When to plant:	Up to 5 weeks before last frost.

Penstemon are one of those plants that can tolerate a little bit of cold weather which means that you can start planting them earlier than other plants that might not handle the cold.

The earliest that you can plant penstemon in Florence is February. However, you really should wait until March if you don't want to take any chances.

The last month that you can plant penstemon and expect a good harvest is probably September. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your penstemon may not have a chance to really do well. You can get started a little bit earlier by starting your penstemon indoors.

Last Frost Date

In Florence the average date of last frost happens on March 15. You should expect an average low temperature of 10°F in the coldest months of winter.

It's important to remember that the actual date of last frost is not always accurate because it is based on the USDA zone info for Florence and it can change quite a bit from year to year. Since half of the time in Florence you get a frost after March 15 be ready to cover your penstemon if you have one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Florence

Here is the info for USDA Zone 8a.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	March 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	November 15
Lowest Expected Low	10°F
Highest Expected Low	15°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is 10°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near 15°F.

Plants to Grow in Florence

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