The USDA Zone info is a great tool for gardeners to help us figure out your gardening schedule. 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 8a can be reffered to in order to figure out when it's the best time to plant calendula.

Planting Calendar for Calendula

Frost tolerance for calendula:	Tolerant of some frost.
When to plant:	Up to 5 weeks before last frost.

Calendula do well in moderate cold which tells us that you can start planting them earlier than other frost tender plants.

The earliest that you can plant calendula in Zone 8a is February. However, you really should wait until March if you don't want to take any chances.

The last month that you can plant calendula and expect a good harvest is probably September. Any later than that and your calendula may not have a chance to fully mature. Starting your calendula indoors is a great way to get them started a couple of weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

In Zone 8a the average date of last frost happens on March 15. In the coldest months of winter you can expect an average low temperature of 10°F.

Keep in mind that USDA zone info for Zone 8a is just an average and the actual date of last frost can change quite a bit from year to year. Half of the time in Zone 8a last frost occurs after March 15 so always be ready to protect your calendula if you have a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Zone 8a

Here is the info for USDA Zone 8a.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	March 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	November 15
Lowest Expected Low	10°F
Highest Expected Low	15°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is 10°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near 15°F.

Plants to Grow in Zone 8a

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Zone 8a.