Before planting it is a good idea to find your USDA Zone info to determine your garden schedule. The most important data that the zone info tells us is average last frost and the lowest expected temperature for your area.

You will be able to estimate when it's the best time to plant bee balm by using the USDA zone info for Lake Elsinore.

Planting Calendar for Bee Balm

Frost tolerance for bee balm:	Tolerant of a very small amount of frost.
When to plant:	Up to 3 weeks before last frost.

Since bee balm are one of those plants that can tolerate a tiny bit of cold weather you can plant them just a tiny bit earlier in the year than plants that are more sensitive to the cold.

The earliest that you can plant bee balm in Lake Elsinore 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 bee balm and expect a good harvest is probably September. If you wait any later than that and your bee balm may not have a chance to fully mature. You can get started a couple of weeks earlier by starting your bee balm indoors.

Last Frost Date

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

Keep in mind that USDA zone info for Lake Elsinore is just an average and the actual date of last frost changes from year to year. Half of the time in Lake Elsinore it frosts late in the year after February 15 so be sure to be ready to protect your bee balm in the event of a surprise late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Lake Elsinore

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 Lake Elsinore

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Lake Elsinore.