Before planting it is a good idea to find your USDA Zone info to determine your garden schedule. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

One way of getting a good idea when to plant phlox is to refer to the USDA zone info for Orting.

Planting Calendar for Phlox

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

Since phlox do well in moderate cold you can plant them a little bit earlier in the year than other frost tender plants.

The earliest that you can plant phlox in Orting 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 phlox and expect a good harvest is probably September. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your phlox may not have a chance to really do well. You can get started a couple of weeks earlier by starting your phlox indoors.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is March 15 in Orting. It might get as low as 15°F during the coldest months of winter.

Always keep in mind that the actual date of last frost is just an average because it is based on the USDA zone info for Orting and it changes from year to year. Half of the time in Orting you get a frost after March 15 so make sure that you are prepared to cover your phlox if you have a 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.