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

The best time to plant columbine in Lancaster should be figured out by using the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Columbine

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

Columbine do well in moderate cold which tells us that you can get them planted earlier than other frost tender plants.

The earliest that you can plant columbine in Lancaster 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 columbine and expect a good harvest is probably September. Any later than that and your columbine may not have a chance to fully mature. You can get started a little bit earlier by starting your columbine indoors.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is March 15 in Lancaster. In the coldest months of winter you can expect an average low temperature of 10°F.

Always keep in mind that USDA zone info for Lancaster may not be accurate from year to year and the actual date of last frost can change quite a bit from year to year. Half of the time in Lancaster you get a frost after March 15 so just be sure to be ready to cover your columbine in the event of a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Lancaster

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 Lancaster

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