Have you ever flipped a packet of seeds over to find the planting date only to be faced with something like “6-8 weeks before last frost”? How do you know when that is?
UGA Extension has a few helpful resources of course!
Check out the Weather Services page for this information. We record temperatures year round and can estimate this year’s last frost date based on the historical data. To access, mouse over the “Calculator” tab, go down the list and choose “Last Frost Date,” from there, select your nearest city in the dropdown box. For us, this would be Townsend, Jekyll Island, and Woodbine. When reviewing this information, we can see that our coastal area experiences last frost anywhere from the end of February to the Middle of March.
That means that RIGHT NOW is the time to start those seeds indoors. Our expert resource on Starting Plants from Seed for the Home Gardener has helpful guidance on germination, materials, seeding techniques, thinning seedlings, transplanting, and hardening off. Plus you will learn more about the other information on the seed packets! For a list of recommended planting dates for Georgia, use our expert resource on Vegetable Gardening in Georgia. As your local county agent I would like to add a tidbit, consider moving planting dates up as much as 2 weeks as we have warmer temperatures sooner than the rest of the state.
