One of the first steps you take when you are making a decision about 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.

By looking at the USDA zone info for Tucson it's possible to determine when it's possible to plant chrysanthemums.

Planting Calendar for Chrysanthemums

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

Since chrysanthemums are one of those plants that can tolerate a tiny bit of cold weather you can plant them just a tiny bit earlier in the year than other frost tender plants.

The earliest that you can plant chrysanthemums in Tucson 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 chrysanthemums and expect a good harvest is probably September. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your chrysanthemums may not have a chance to grow to maturity. You can get started a couple of weeks earlier by starting your chrysanthemums indoors.

Last Frost Date

In Tucson the average date of last frost happens on February 15. It might get as low as 25°F during the coldest months of winter.

Always keep in mind that USDA zone info for Tucson is not always accurate and the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Half of the time in Tucson last frost occurs after February 15 so be sure to be ready to protect your chrysanthemums if you have a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Tucson

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 Tucson

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