The USDA Zone info is a great tool for gardeners to help us estimate your gardening schedule. 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 you can plant catharanthus is to examine the USDA zone info for Gilroy.

Planting Calendar for Catharanthus

Frost tolerance for catharanthus:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After the last frost when the weather gets warmer.

Since catharanthus require warm weather it's necessary to wait until after all chance of frost has passed before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant catharanthus in Gilroy 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 catharanthus and expect a good harvest is probably September. If you wait any later than that and your catharanthus may not have a chance to grow to maturity. If you are starting your catharanthus indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a little bit earlier.

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost has passed is on February 15 in Gilroy. You can expect an average low temperature of 25°F in the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Gilroy may not be accurate from year to year the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Half of the time in Gilroy you get surprised by a frost after February 15 so make sure that you are prepared to cover your catharanthus in the event of one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Gilroy

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 Gilroy

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