Before planting it is a good idea to find your USDA Zone info to determine your garden schedule. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

The earliest that you can plant penstemon in Winchester should be estimated by using the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Penstemon

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

Penstemon can survive in moderate cold which means that you can plant them a little earlier in the year than plants that are more sensitive to the cold.

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

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is April 15 in Winchester. It might get as low as 0°F during the coldest months of winter.

Remember that the actual date of last frost is an average because it is based on the USDA zone info for Winchester and it is different every year. Half of the time in Winchester last frost occurs after April 15 so always be ready to cover your penstemon if you have a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Winchester

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 Winchester

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