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.

One way of getting a good idea when it's the best time to plant santolina is to consult the USDA zone info for Springfield.

Planting Calendar for Santolina

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

Santolina do well in cold which tells us that you can get them planted much earlier than more sensitive plants.

The earliest that you can plant santolina in Springfield 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 santolina and expect a good harvest is probably September. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your santolina may not have a chance to grow to maturity. You can get started a few weeks earlier by starting your santolina indoors.

Last Frost Date

In Springfield the average date of last frost happens on April 15. It might get as low as 0°F during the coldest months of winter.

Remember that USDA zone info for Springfield is just an average and the actual date of last frost is different every year. Half of the time in Springfield you get surprised by a frost after April 15 so make sure that you are ready to cover your santolina in the event of a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Springfield

Here is the info for USDA Zone 7a.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	April 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	October 15
Lowest Expected Low	0°F
Highest Expected Low	5°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is 0°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near 5°F.

Plants to Grow in Springfield

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