One of the first steps you take when you are determining your gardening schedule is find your USDA Zone info. The most important data that the zone info tells us is average last frost and the lowest expected temperature for your area.

One way of estimating when it's a good idea to plant gomphrena is to consult the USDA zone info for Los Banos.

Planting Calendar for Gomphrena

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

You can plant gomphrena slightly earlier in the year because they are one of those plants that can tolerate a tiny bit of cold weather.

The earliest that you can plant gomphrena in Los Banos 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 gomphrena and expect a good harvest is probably September. Any later than that and your gomphrena may not have a chance to fully mature. Starting your gomphrena indoors is a great way to get them started a little bit earlier.

Last Frost Date

In Los Banos the average date of last frost happens on February 15. It might get as low as 20°F during the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Los Banos is not always accurate the actual date of last frost can change quite a bit from year to year. Half of the time in Los Banos there is a last frost after February 15 so make sure that you are prepared to cover your gomphrena if you have a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Los Banos

Here is the info for USDA Zone 9a.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	February 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	December 15
Lowest Expected Low	20°F
Highest Expected Low	25°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is 20°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near 25°F.

Plants to Grow in Los Banos

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Los Banos.