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

A way of figuring out when it's a good idea to plant tarragon is to examine the USDA zone info for Federal Way.

Planting Calendar for Tarragon

Frost tolerance for tarragon:	Tolerant of a very small amount of frost.
When to plant:	Up to 3 weeks before last frost.

Tarragon do ok in moderate cold which means that you can start planting them slightly earlier than more sensitive plants.

The earliest that you can plant tarragon in Federal Way is March. However, you really should wait until April if you don't want to take any chances.

The last month that you can plant tarragon and expect a good harvest is probably August. Any later than that and your tarragon may not have a chance to grow to maturity. Starting your tarragon indoors is a great way to get them started a couple of weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is March 15 in Federal Way. You should expect an average low temperature of 15°F in the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Federal Way is an average the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Since half of the time in Federal Way there is a last frost after March 15 be ready to protect your tarragon in the event of one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Federal Way

Here is the info for USDA Zone 8b.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	March 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	November 15
Lowest Expected Low	15°F
Highest Expected Low	20°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is 15°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near 20°F.

Plants to Grow in Federal Way

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Federal Way.