One of the best tools that you have as gardeners to help us determine your gardening schedule is the USDA zone info. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

In Atwater you can estimate when to plant elephant ears by using the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Elephant Ears

Frost tolerance for elephant ears:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After the last frost has passed.

Elephant Ears are not cold tolerant which means that it's important to wait until it warms up after all chance of frost has passed before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant elephant ears in Atwater 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 elephant ears and expect a good harvest is probably September. Any later than that and your elephant ears may not have a chance to really do well. If you are starting your elephant ears indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a little bit earlier.

Last Frost Date

In Atwater the average date of last frost happens on February 15. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of 20°F.

It's important to remember that USDA zone info for Atwater is just an average and the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Since half of the time in Atwater you get surprised by a frost after February 15 be ready to protect your elephant ears in the event of a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Atwater

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 Atwater

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