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.

A way of getting a good idea when you can plant mimulus is to check out the USDA zone info for Barstow.

Planting Calendar for Mimulus

Frost tolerance for mimulus:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After the last frost.

Mimulus are not cold tolerant which tells us that it is important to wait until it warms up after the last frost before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant mimulus in Barstow 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 mimulus and expect a good harvest is probably September. If you wait any later than that and your mimulus may not have a chance to grow to maturity. Starting your mimulus indoors is a great way to get them started a few weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost when the weather gets warmer is on February 15 in Barstow. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of 20°F.

Remember that USDA zone info for Barstow is not always accurate and the actual date of last frost can change quite a bit from year to year. Half of the time in Barstow it frosts late in the year after February 15 so be sure to be ready to cover your mimulus if you have a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Barstow

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 Barstow

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