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 earliest that you can plant calliopsis in Zone 8b should be determined by checking out the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Calliopsis

Frost tolerance for calliopsis:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After all chance of frost has passed.

Since calliopsis are not cold tolerant you really should wait until after the last frost when the weather gets warmer before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant calliopsis in Zone 8b is April. However, you really should wait until May if you don't want to take any chances.

The last month that you can plant calliopsis and expect a good harvest is probably August. If you wait any later than that and your calliopsis may not have a chance to fully mature. You can get started a few weeks earlier by starting your calliopsis indoors.

Last Frost Date

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

Since the USDA zone info for Zone 8b may not be accurate from year to year the actual date of last frost changes from year to year. Since half of the time in Zone 8b it frosts late in the year after March 15 be ready to protect your calliopsis in the event of 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.