The USDA Zone info is a great tool for gardeners to help us figure out your gardening schedule. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

A way of getting a good idea when it's possible to plant penstemon is to look at the USDA zone info for Lake Elsinore.

Planting Calendar for Penstemon

Frost tolerance for penstemon:	Tolerant of some frost.
When to plant:	Up to 5 weeks before last frost.

Penstemon are one of those plants that can tolerate a little bit of cold weather which means that you can get them planted earlier than more sensitive plants.

The earliest that you can plant penstemon in Lake Elsinore is January. However, you really should wait until February if you don't want to take any chances.

The last month that you can plant penstemon and expect a good harvest is probably October. If you wait any later than that and your penstemon may not have a chance to fully mature. You can get started a few weeks earlier by starting your penstemon indoors.

Last Frost Date

In Lake Elsinore 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.

Always keep in mind that USDA zone info for Lake Elsinore may not be accurate from year to year and the actual date of last frost can change quite a bit from year to year. Since half of the time in Lake Elsinore you get a frost after February 15 be ready to cover your penstemon in the event of a 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.