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 USDA zone info for Virginia Beach should be reviewed to estimate when it's possible to plant dianthus.

Planting Calendar for Dianthus

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

Dianthus are moderately cold tolerant which means that you can start planting them earlier than other frost tender plants.

The earliest that you can plant dianthus in Virginia Beach 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 dianthus and expect a good harvest is probably September. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your dianthus may not have a chance to grow to maturity. You can get started a little bit earlier by starting your dianthus indoors.

Last Frost Date

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

Keep in mind that USDA zone info for Virginia Beach may not be accurate from year to year and the actual date of last frost changes from year to year. Since half of the time in Virginia Beach it frosts late in the year after March 15 be ready to protect your dianthus if you have a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Virginia Beach

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 Virginia Beach

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Virginia Beach.