Before planting it is a good idea to find your USDA Zone info to determine 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.

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

Planting Calendar for Catharanthus

Frost tolerance for catharanthus:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After all chance of frost has passed.

It's a bad idea to plant catharanthus until after the last frost has passed because they are not cold tolerant.

The earliest that you can plant catharanthus in Fairfax 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 catharanthus and expect a good harvest is probably August. If you wait any later than that and your catharanthus may not have a chance to grow to maturity. You can get started a few weeks earlier by starting your catharanthus indoors.

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost is on April 15 in Fairfax. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of 0°F.

Just be sure to remember that USDA zone info for Fairfax is just an average and the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Since half of the time in Fairfax it frosts late in the year after April 15 be ready to protect your catharanthus if you have a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Fairfax

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 Fairfax

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