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.

A common way of getting a good idea when it's a good idea to plant heliotrope is to refer to the USDA zone info for Galt.

Planting Calendar for Heliotrope

Frost tolerance for heliotrope:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After all chance of frost has passed.

Heliotrope are not cold tolerant which means that you have to wait until it warms up after the last frost before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant heliotrope in Galt 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 heliotrope and expect a good harvest is probably September. Any later than that and your heliotrope may not have a chance to grow to maturity. Starting your heliotrope indoors is a great way to get them started a little bit earlier.

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost has passed is on February 15 in Galt. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of 25°F.

Since the USDA zone info for Galt may not be accurate from year to year the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Since half of the time in Galt you get a frost after February 15 be ready to protect your heliotrope in the event of a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Galt

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 Galt

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