When to Plant Snow-in Summer in Zone 3a

One of the first steps you take when you are estimating your gardening schedule is find your 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.

The USDA zone info for Zone 3a should be looked at to figure out when it's possible to plant snow-in summer.


Planting Calendar for Snow-in Summer

Frost tolerance for snow-in summer: Tolerant of some frost.
When to plant: Up to 5 weeks before last frost.

Since snow-in summer are one of those plants that can tolerate a little bit of cold weather you can plant them a little earlier in the year than other frost tender plants.

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Legend 
A good time to plant snow-in summer
Possibly ok, but a risky time to plant snow-in summer
Probably not a good time to plant snow-in summer

The earliest that you can plant snow-in summer in Zone 3a 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 snow-in summer and expect a good harvest is probably August. If you wait any later than that and your snow-in summer may not have a chance to really do well. If you are starting your snow-in summer indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a couple of weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost is on May 15 in Zone 3a. In the coldest months of winter you can expect an average low temperature of -40°F.

Keep in mind that the actual date of last frost is an average because it is based on the USDA zone info for Zone 3a and it will vary from year to year. Since half of the time in Zone 3a you get surprised by a frost after May 15 be ready to cover your snow-in summer if you have a surprise late frost.

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.