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.

In Washington you can estimate when it's a good idea to plant salvia by looking at the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Salvia

Frost tolerance for salvia:	Tolerant of a very small amount of frost.
When to plant:	Up to 3 weeks before last frost.

Salvia tend to make it in mild cold which means that you can plant them just a tiny bit earlier in the year than more sensitive plants.

The earliest that you can plant salvia in Washington is March. However, you really should wait until April if you don't want to take any chances.

The last month that you can plant salvia and expect a good harvest is probably August. If you wait any later than that and your salvia may not have a chance to fully mature. If you are starting your salvia indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a few weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost when the weather gets warmer is on March 15 in Washington. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of 10°F.

Since the USDA zone info for Washington may not be accurate from year to year the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Since half of the time in Washington there is a last frost after March 15 be ready to protect your salvia if you have a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Washington

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 Washington

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