One of the first steps you take when you are making a decision about your gardening schedule is find your USDA Zone info. The most important data that the zone info tells us is average last frost and the lowest expected temperature for your area.

The first opportunity to plant shallots in West Columbia should be determined by using the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Shallots

Frost tolerance for shallots:	Tolerant of a very small amount of frost.
When to plant:	Up to 3 weeks before last frost.

Shallots tend to make it in very little cold which means that you can plant them a bit earlier in the year than plants that are more sensitive to the cold.

The earliest that you can plant shallots in West Columbia is March. However, you really should wait until April if you don't want to take any chances.

The last month that you can plant shallots and expect a good harvest is probably August. If you wait any later than that and your shallots may not have a chance to really do well. Starting your shallots indoors is a great way to get them started a few weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost is on March 15 in West Columbia. It might get as low as 10°F during the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for West Columbia is not always accurate the actual date of last frost changes from year to year. Half of the time in West Columbia you get a frost after March 15 so make sure that you are ready to protect your shallots if you have one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for West Columbia

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 West Columbia

You may be interested in your other planting guides for West Columbia.