One of the first steps you take when you are estimating your gardening schedule is find your USDA Zone info. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

The USDA zone info for Port Townsend should be read to estimate when you can plant lemon balm.

Planting Calendar for Lemon balm

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

Lemon balm do well in some cold which means that you can plant them just a tiny bit earlier in the year than more sensitive plants.

The earliest that you can plant lemon balm in Port Townsend 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 lemon balm and expect a good harvest is probably August. If you wait any later than that and your lemon balm may not have a chance to grow to maturity. Starting your lemon balm indoors is a great way to get them started a few weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost is on March 15 in Port Townsend. You should expect an average low temperature of 15°F in the coldest months of winter.

Always keep in mind that the actual date of last frost is not always accurate because it is based on the USDA zone info for Port Townsend and it changes from year to year. Half of the time in Port Townsend last frost occurs after March 15 so always be ready to cover your lemon balm if you have a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Port Townsend

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 Port Townsend

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Port Townsend.