One of the best tools that you have as gardeners to help us figure out 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.

A common way of determining when to plant bittercress is to consult the USDA zone info for Orting.

Planting Calendar for Bittercress

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

You can plant bittercress a bit earlier in the year because they do ok in moderate cold.

The earliest that you can plant bittercress in Orting 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 bittercress and expect a good harvest is probably August. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your bittercress may not have a chance to fully mature. If you are starting your bittercress indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a few weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost has passed is on March 15 in Orting. It might get as low as 15°F during the coldest months of winter.

Keep in mind that USDA zone info for Orting is not always accurate and the actual date of last frost can change quite a bit from year to year. Half of the time in Orting you get surprised by a frost after March 15 so make sure that you are prepared to cover your bittercress if you have a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Orting

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 Orting

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