Before planting it is a good idea to find your USDA Zone info to estimate your garden schedule. The most important data that the zone info tells us is average last frost and the lowest expected temperature for your area.

A common way of figuring out when it's the best time to plant sunflowers is to use the USDA zone info for Culpeper.

Planting Calendar for Sunflowers

Frost tolerance for sunflowers:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After the last frost has passed.

You really shouldn't plant sunflowers until after the last frost has passed because they do not do well in cold weather.

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

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

Last Frost Date

In Culpeper the average date of last frost happens on April 15. In the coldest months of winter you can expect an average low temperature of 0°F.

Remember that USDA zone info for Culpeper is not always accurate and the actual date of last frost changes from year to year. Half of the time in Culpeper you get surprised by a frost after April 15 so make sure that you are ready to cover your sunflowers in the event of a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Culpeper

Here is the info for USDA Zone 7a.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	April 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	October 15
Lowest Expected Low	0°F
Highest Expected Low	5°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is 0°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near 5°F.

Plants to Grow in Culpeper

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