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

In Sumter you can figure out when it's a good idea to plant diascia by using the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Diascia

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

Diascia do well in some cold which tells us that you can plant them a little bit earlier in the year than other frost tender plants.

The earliest that you can plant diascia in Sumter 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 diascia and expect a good harvest is probably September. If you wait any later than that and your diascia may not have a chance to grow to maturity. You can get started a couple of weeks earlier by starting your diascia indoors.

Last Frost Date

In Sumter 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.

Since the USDA zone info for Sumter is just an average the actual date of last frost can change quite a bit from year to year. Since half of the time in Sumter it frosts late in the year after March 15 be ready to cover your diascia if you have a surprise 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.