When to Plant Peas in Zone 8a

One of the best tools that you have as gardeners to help us figure out your gardening schedule is the 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 8a should be reffered to in order to estimate when it's the best time to plant peas.


Planting Calendar for Peas

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

Since peas do well in cold you can plant them much earlier in the year than plants that are more sensitive to the cold.

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

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

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost is on March 15 in Zone 8a. It might get as low as 10°F during the coldest months of winter.

Just be sure to remember that USDA zone info for Zone 8a may not be accurate from year to year and the actual date of last frost changes from year to year. Half of the time in Zone 8a last frost occurs after March 15 so always be ready to cover your peas if you have one of those late frosts.

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 Low10°F
Highest Expected Low15°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.