One of the first steps you take when you are getting a good idea 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 making a decision about when it's a good idea to plant schizanthus is to use the USDA zone info for El Centro.

Planting Calendar for Schizanthus

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

It's not a good idea to plant schizanthus until after the last frost has passed because they require warm weather.

The earliest that you can plant schizanthus in El Centro 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 schizanthus and expect a good harvest is probably September. Any later than that and your schizanthus may not have a chance to grow to maturity. Starting your schizanthus indoors is a great way to get them started a couple of weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

In El Centro the average date of last frost happens on January 31. You should expect an average low temperature of 30°F in the coldest months of winter.

Remember that USDA zone info for El Centro may not be accurate from year to year and the actual date of last frost changes from year to year. Since half of the time in El Centro it frosts late in the year after January 31 be ready to cover your schizanthus in the event of one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for El Centro

Here is the info for USDA Zone 10a.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	January 31
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	December 15
Lowest Expected Low	30°F
Highest Expected Low	35°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is 30°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near 35°F.

Plants to Grow in El Centro

You may be interested in your other planting guides for El Centro.