One of the first steps you take when you are determining your gardening schedule is find your USDA Zone info. The most important data that the zone info tells us is average last frost and the lowest expected temperature for your area.

A way of getting a good idea when it's the best time to plant carnation is to consult the USDA zone info for Fountain Hills.

Planting Calendar for Carnation

Frost tolerance for carnation:	Very tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	Up to 7 weeks before last frost.

Carnation tend to make it in pretty solid cold which tells us that you can plant them much earlier in the year than other frost tender plants.

The earliest that you can plant carnation in Fountain Hills is January. However, you really should wait until February if you don't want to take any chances.

The last month that you can plant carnation and expect a good harvest is probably October. If you wait any later than that and your carnation may not have a chance to grow to maturity. You can get started a little bit earlier by starting your carnation indoors.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is February 15 in Fountain Hills. It might get as low as 25°F during the coldest months of winter.

Remember that USDA zone info for Fountain Hills is just an average and the actual date of last frost is different every year. Since half of the time in Fountain Hills you get a frost after February 15 be ready to cover your carnation if you have one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Fountain Hills

Here is the info for USDA Zone 9b.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	February 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	December 15
Lowest Expected Low	25°F
Highest Expected Low	30°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is 25°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near 30°F.

Plants to Grow in Fountain Hills

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Fountain Hills.