One of the best tools that you have as gardeners to help us estimate your gardening schedule is the USDA zone info. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

By referring to the USDA zone info for Memphis you should be able to estimate when it's possible to plant onions.

Planting Calendar for Onions

Frost tolerance for onions:	Very tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	Up to 7 weeks before last frost.

Onions are one of those plants that can tolerate quite a bit of cold weather which tells us that you can plant them a quite a bit earlier than plants that are more sensitive to the cold.

The earliest that you can plant onions in Memphis 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 onions and expect a good harvest is probably September. Any later than that and your onions may not have a chance to fully mature. Starting your onions indoors is a great way to get them started a little bit earlier.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is April 15 in Memphis. You should expect an average low temperature of 5°F in the coldest months of winter.

Always keep in mind that the actual date of last frost may not be accurate from year to year because it is based on the USDA zone info for Memphis and it changes from year to year. Half of the time in Memphis there is a last frost after April 15 so always be ready to cover your onions if you have a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Memphis

Here is the info for USDA Zone 7b.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	April 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	October 15
Lowest Expected Low	5°F
Highest Expected Low	10°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 10°F.

Plants to Grow in Memphis

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