When to Plant Hibiscus in Zone 3a

The USDA Zone info is a great tool for gardeners to help us figure out your gardening schedule. 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 estimating when you can plant hibiscus is to refer to the USDA zone info for Zone 3a.


Planting Calendar for Hibiscus

Frost tolerance for hibiscus: Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant: After the last frost when the weather gets warmer.

Hibiscus do not do well in cold weather which tells us that it is necessary to wait until it warms up after the last frost has passed before you can plant them.

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

The earliest that you can plant hibiscus in Zone 3a is May. However, you really should wait until June if you don't want to take any chances.

The last month that you can plant hibiscus and expect a good harvest is probably August. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your hibiscus may not have a chance to really do well. You can get started a little bit earlier by starting your hibiscus indoors.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is May 15 in Zone 3a. You can expect an average low temperature of -40°F in the coldest months of winter.

Remember that USDA zone info for Zone 3a is an average and the actual date of last frost can change quite a bit from year to year. Since half of the time in Zone 3a last frost occurs after May 15 be ready to protect your hibiscus in the event of one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Zone 3a

Here is the info for USDA Zone 3a.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)May 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)September 15
Lowest Expected Low-40°F
Highest Expected Low-35°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is -40°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near -35°F.

Plants to Grow in Zone 3a

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Zone 3a.