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 checking out the USDA zone info for Richmond you should be able to figure out when you can plant santolina.

Planting Calendar for Santolina

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

Santolina are one of those plants that can tolerate quite a bit of cold weather which means that you can get them planted much earlier than other frost tender plants.

The earliest that you can plant santolina in Richmond is January. However, you really should wait until February if you don't want to take any chances.

The last month that you can plant santolina and expect a good harvest is probably October. Any later than that and your santolina may not have a chance to grow to maturity. Starting your santolina indoors is a great way to get them started a little bit earlier.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is February 15 in Richmond. It might get as low as 20°F during the coldest months of winter.

Always keep in mind that USDA zone info for Richmond is not always accurate and the actual date of last frost is different every year. Since half of the time in Richmond there is a last frost after February 15 be ready to protect your santolina if you have one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Richmond

Here is the info for USDA Zone 9a.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	February 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	December 15
Lowest Expected Low	20°F
Highest Expected Low	25°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is 20°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near 25°F.

Plants to Grow in Richmond

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