One of the first steps you take when you are making a decision about your gardening schedule is find your USDA Zone info. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

By looking at the USDA zone info for Chesapeake it's possible to figure out when it's the best time to plant rhubarb.

Planting Calendar for Rhubarb

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

Rhubarb tend to make it in mild cold which means that you can plant them just a bit earlier in the year than other plants that might not handle the cold.

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

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is March 15 in Chesapeake. It might get as low as 10°F during the coldest months of winter.

Just be sure to remember that the actual date of last frost is not always accurate because it is based on the USDA zone info for Chesapeake and it can change quite a bit from year to year. Half of the time in Chesapeake it frosts late in the year after March 15 so always be ready to cover your rhubarb if you have a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Chesapeake

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 Chesapeake

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