When to Plant Thyme in Zone 3a

One of the best tools that you have as gardeners to help us estimate your gardening schedule is the 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 Zone 3a can be looked at to estimate when to plant thyme.


Planting Calendar for Thyme

Frost tolerance for thyme: Very tolerant of frost.
When to plant: Up to 7 weeks before last frost.

Thyme are one of those plants that can tolerate quite a bit of cold weather which tells us that you can plant them much earlier than other plants that might not handle the cold.

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

The earliest that you can plant thyme 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 thyme and expect a good harvest is probably August. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your thyme may not have a chance to really do well. Starting your thyme indoors is a great way to get them started a few weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is 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 may not be accurate from year to year because it is based on the USDA zone info for Zone 3a and it can change quite a bit from year to year. Since half of the time in Zone 3a there is a last frost after May 15 be ready to cover your thyme in the event of a 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.