Before planting it is a good idea to find your USDA Zone info to determine your garden schedule. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

The USDA zone info for Bay Minette should be reviewed to determine when to plant penstemon.

Planting Calendar for Penstemon

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

You can plant penstemon a little bit earlier in the year because they are one of those plants that can tolerate a little bit of cold weather.

The earliest that you can plant penstemon in Bay Minette 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 penstemon and expect a good harvest is probably September. Any later than that and your penstemon may not have a chance to grow to maturity. If you are starting your penstemon indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a few weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is March 15 in Bay Minette. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of 15°F.

Keep in mind that the actual date of last frost is not always accurate because it is based on the USDA zone info for Bay Minette and it can change quite a bit from year to year. Half of the time in Bay Minette you get surprised by a frost after March 15 so be sure to be ready to protect your penstemon if you have a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Bay Minette

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 Bay Minette

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Bay Minette.