Before planting it is a good idea to find your USDA Zone info to figure out your garden schedule. 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 8b can be reviewed to determine when it's possible to plant beets.

Planting Calendar for Beets

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

Beets do well in moderate cold which tells us that you can start planting them earlier than other plants that might not handle the cold.

The earliest that you can plant beets in Zone 8b 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 beets and expect a good harvest is probably September. If you wait any later than that and your beets may not have a chance to fully mature. You can get started a little bit earlier by starting your beets indoors.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is March 15 in Zone 8b. You should expect an average low temperature of 15°F in the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Zone 8b is an average the actual date of last frost is different every year. Half of the time in Zone 8b you get a frost after March 15 so just be sure to be ready to protect your beets if you have a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Zone 8b

Here is the info for USDA Zone 8b.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	March 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	November 15
Lowest Expected Low	15°F
Highest Expected Low	20°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is 15°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near 20°F.

Plants to Grow in Zone 8b

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