One of the first steps you take when you are getting a good idea your gardening schedule is find your USDA Zone info. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

The earliest that you can plant melampodium in Gulf Shores can be figured out by reviewing the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Melampodium

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

It's not a good idea to plant melampodium until after the last frost because they require warm weather.

The earliest that you can plant melampodium in Gulf Shores 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 melampodium and expect a good harvest is probably September. Any later than that and your melampodium may not have a chance to fully mature. Starting your melampodium indoors is a great way to get them started a little bit earlier.

Last Frost Date

In Gulf Shores the average date of last frost happens on February 15. You can expect an average low temperature of 20°F in the coldest months of winter.

Keep in mind that USDA zone info for Gulf Shores is an average and the actual date of last frost is different every year. Half of the time in Gulf Shores there is a last frost after February 15 so be sure to be ready to cover your melampodium if you have one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Gulf Shores

Here is the info for USDA Zone 9a.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	February 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	December 15
Lowest Expected Low	20°F
Highest Expected Low	25°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is 20°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near 25°F.

Plants to Grow in Gulf Shores

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Gulf Shores.