Before planting it is a good idea to find your USDA Zone info to determine 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.

You can estimate when it's a good idea to plant pennisetum in Athens by using the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Pennisetum

Frost tolerance for pennisetum:	Tolerant of a very small amount of frost.
When to plant:	Up to 3 weeks before last frost.

Pennisetum are barely cold tolerant which means that you can start planting them slightly earlier than more sensitive plants.

The earliest that you can plant pennisetum in Athens is March. However, you really should wait until April if you don't want to take any chances.

The last month that you can plant pennisetum and expect a good harvest is probably August. If you wait any later than that and your pennisetum may not have a chance to really do well. You can get started a little bit earlier by starting your pennisetum indoors.

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost has passed is on April 15 in Athens. It might get as low as 5°F during the coldest months of winter.

Remember that the actual date of last frost may not be accurate from year to year because it is based on the USDA zone info for Athens and it can change quite a bit from year to year. Since half of the time in Athens it frosts late in the year after April 15 be ready to cover your pennisetum in the event of one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Athens

Here is the info for USDA Zone 7b.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	April 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	October 15
Lowest Expected Low	5°F
Highest Expected Low	10°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is 5°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near 10°F.

Plants to Grow in Athens

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Athens.