One of the first steps you take when you are figuring out 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.

The first chance to plant hardy asters in Newport News can be figured out by using the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Hardy Asters

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

You can plant hardy asters slightly earlier in the year because they are barely cold tolerant.

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

Last Frost Date

In Newport News the average date of last frost happens on March 15. In the coldest months of winter you can expect an average low temperature of 10°F.

Keep in mind that USDA zone info for Newport News may not be accurate from year to year and the actual date of last frost can change quite a bit from year to year. Half of the time in Newport News there is a last frost after March 15 so just be sure to be ready to protect your hardy asters if you have one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Newport News

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 Newport News

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Newport News.