One of the first steps you take when you are determining 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.

In Winchester you can estimate when it's the best time to plant alyssum by referring to the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Alyssum

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

Alyssum are one of those plants that can tolerate quite a bit of cold weather which means that you can plant them a quite a bit earlier than other plants that might not handle the cold.

The earliest that you can plant alyssum in Winchester 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 alyssum and expect a good harvest is probably September. Any later than that and your alyssum may not have a chance to really do well. If you are starting your alyssum indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a little bit earlier.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is April 15 in Winchester. In the coldest months of winter you can expect an average low temperature of -5°F.

Since the USDA zone info for Winchester is just an average the actual date of last frost is different every year. Half of the time in Winchester last frost occurs after April 15 so always be ready to cover your alyssum if you have a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Winchester

Here is the info for USDA Zone 6b.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	April 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	October 15
Lowest Expected Low	-5°F
Highest Expected Low	0°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 0°F.

Plants to Grow in Winchester

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