One of the first steps you take when you are estimating your gardening schedule is find your USDA Zone info. The most important data that the zone info tells us is average last frost and the lowest expected temperature for your area.

It's a good idea to estimate when it's the best time to plant lavender by looking at the USDA zone info for Smithfield.

Planting Calendar for Lavender

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

Lavender are one of those plants that can tolerate a little bit of cold weather which tells us that you can start planting them earlier than plants that are more sensitive to the cold.

The earliest that you can plant lavender in Smithfield 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 lavender and expect a good harvest is probably September. If you wait any later than that and your lavender may not have a chance to really do well. You can get started a few weeks earlier by starting your lavender indoors.

Last Frost Date

In Smithfield the average date of last frost happens on April 15. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of -15°F.

Since the USDA zone info for Smithfield is an average the actual date of last frost changes from year to year. Since half of the time in Smithfield you get surprised by a frost after April 15 be ready to cover your lavender if you have a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Smithfield

Here is the info for USDA Zone 5b.

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

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is -15°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near -10°F.

Plants to Grow in Smithfield

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