Before planting it is a good idea to find your USDA Zone info to figure out 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 getting a good idea when to plant scabiosa is to use the USDA zone info for Smithfield.

Planting Calendar for Scabiosa

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

Since scabiosa are one of those plants that can tolerate a little bit of cold weather you can plant them a little earlier in the year than other frost tender plants.

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

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost is on March 15 in Smithfield. It might get as low as 10°F during the coldest months of winter.

It's important to remember that the actual date of last frost is just an average because it is based on the USDA zone info for Smithfield and it will vary from year to year. Since half of the time in Smithfield last frost occurs after March 15 be ready to cover your scabiosa in the event of one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Smithfield

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 Smithfield

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