When to Plant Peonies in Zone 12a

Before planting it is a good idea to find your USDA Zone info to determine your garden schedule. The most important data that the zone info tells us is average last frost and the lowest expected temperature for your area.

You can estimate when it's the best time to plant peonies in Zone 12a by using the USDA zone info.

Create beautiful hand-made plants at forever-plants.com

Planting Calendar for Peonies

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

Peonies do ok in moderate cold which means that you can plant them slightly earlier than plants that are more sensitive to the cold.

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Legend 
A good time to plant peonies
Possibly ok, but a risky time to plant peonies
Probably not a good time to plant peonies

The earliest that you can plant peonies in Zone 12a is January. However, you really should wait until February if you don't want to take any chances.

The last month that you can plant peonies and expect a good harvest is probably November. If you wait any later than that and your peonies may not have a chance to really do well. If you are starting your peonies indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a little bit earlier.

Last Frost Date

In Zone 12a it never frosts. It might get as low as 50°F during the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Zone 12a is an average the actual date of last frost can change quite a bit from year to year. Since it never frosts in Zone 12a you do not have to be ready to protect your peonies in the event of a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Zone 12a

Here is the info for USDA Zone 12a.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)Never
Average Date of First Frost (fall)Never
Lowest Expected Low50°F
Highest Expected Low55°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is 50°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near 55°F.

Plants to Grow in Zone 12a

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Zone 12a.