One of the best tools that you have as gardeners to help us determine your gardening schedule is the 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.

You should be able to estimate when it's possible to plant fennel by using the USDA zone info for South Boston.

Planting Calendar for Fennel

Frost tolerance for fennel:	Very tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	Up to 7 weeks before last frost.

Since fennel do well in cold you can plant them much earlier in the year than other plants that might not handle the cold.

The earliest that you can plant fennel in South Boston 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 fennel and expect a good harvest is probably September. Any later than that and your fennel may not have a chance to really do well. You can get started a little bit earlier by starting your fennel indoors.

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost is on April 15 in South Boston. In the coldest months of winter you can expect an average low temperature of 5°F.

Just be sure to remember that USDA zone info for South Boston is an average and the actual date of last frost can change quite a bit from year to year. Half of the time in South Boston there is a last frost after April 15 so always be ready to cover your fennel in the event of a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for South Boston

Here is the info for USDA Zone 7b.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	April 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	October 15
Lowest Expected Low	5°F
Highest Expected Low	10°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is 5°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near 10°F.

Plants to Grow in South Boston

You may be interested in your other planting guides for South Boston.