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.

By checking out the USDA zone info for Gig Harbor you should be able to determine when to plant petunias.

Planting Calendar for Petunias

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

Petunias are barely cold tolerant which tells us that you can plant them slightly earlier than other frost tender plants.

The earliest that you can plant petunias in Gig Harbor 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 petunias and expect a good harvest is probably August. If you wait any later than that and your petunias may not have a chance to grow to maturity. You can get started a few weeks earlier by starting your petunias indoors.

Last Frost Date

In Gig Harbor the average date of last frost happens on March 15. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of 15°F.

Since the USDA zone info for Gig Harbor is not always accurate the actual date of last frost is different every year. Half of the time in Gig Harbor you get a frost after March 15 so just be sure to be ready to cover your petunias if you have a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Gig Harbor

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 Gig Harbor

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Gig Harbor.