Before planting it is a good idea to find your USDA Zone info to estimate your garden schedule. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

By looking at the USDA zone info for Gonzales you should be able to figure out when it's the best time to plant balsam.

Planting Calendar for Balsam

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

Balsam 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 balsam in Gonzales 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 balsam and expect a good harvest is probably September. If you wait any later than that and your balsam may not have a chance to fully mature. You can get started a couple of weeks earlier by starting your balsam indoors.

Last Frost Date

In Gonzales the average date of last frost happens on February 15. You should expect an average low temperature of 25°F in the coldest months of winter.

Just be sure to remember that the actual date of last frost may not be accurate from year to year because it is based on the USDA zone info for Gonzales and it is different every year. Since half of the time in Gonzales you get a frost after February 15 be ready to cover your balsam if you have one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Gonzales

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 Gonzales

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