One of the first steps you take when you are making a decision about 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 opportunity to plant thyme in Suffolk should be figured out by referring to the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Thyme

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

Thyme are very cold tolerant which means that you can get them planted much earlier than other frost tender plants.

The earliest that you can plant thyme in Suffolk 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 thyme and expect a good harvest is probably September. Any later than that and your thyme may not have a chance to really do well. You can get started a couple of weeks earlier by starting your thyme indoors.

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost when the weather gets warmer is on March 15 in Suffolk. You can expect an average low temperature of 10°F in the coldest months of winter.

Remember that the actual date of last frost is an average because it is based on the USDA zone info for Suffolk and it will vary from year to year. Half of the time in Suffolk you get surprised by a frost after March 15 so make sure that you are prepared to cover your thyme in the event of a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Suffolk

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 Suffolk

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