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 best time to plant pennisetum in Valley should be figured out by reviewing 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.

Since pennisetum are barely cold tolerant you can plant them a bit earlier in the year than more sensitive plants.

The earliest that you can plant pennisetum in Valley 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. If you are starting your pennisetum indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a couple of weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is March 15 in Valley. In the coldest months of winter you can expect an average low temperature of 10°F.

Since the USDA zone info for Valley is an average the actual date of last frost changes from year to year. Half of the time in Valley there is a last frost after March 15 so be sure to be ready to cover your pennisetum if you have a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Valley

Here is the info for USDA Zone 8a.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	March 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	November 15
Lowest Expected Low	10°F
Highest Expected Low	15°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is 10°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near 15°F.

Plants to Grow in Valley

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