One of the first steps you take when you are estimating 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.

The USDA zone info for Sumter can be read to figure out when it's a good idea to plant calliopsis.

Planting Calendar for Calliopsis

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

You really shouldn't plant calliopsis until after the last frost because they are not cold tolerant.

The earliest that you can plant calliopsis in Sumter 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 calliopsis and expect a good harvest is probably August. Any later than that and your calliopsis may not have a chance to grow to maturity. Starting your calliopsis indoors is a great way to get them started a little bit earlier.

Last Frost Date

On average all chance of frost has passed is on March 15 in Sumter. It might get as low as 10°F during the coldest months of winter.

Always keep in mind that USDA zone info for Sumter is an average and the actual date of last frost changes from year to year. Since half of the time in Sumter you get a frost after March 15 be ready to cover your calliopsis in the event of a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Sumter

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 Sumter

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