One of the best tools that you have as gardeners to help us figure out your gardening schedule is the USDA zone info. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

The USDA zone info for Los Banos should be looked at to determine when it's a good idea to plant lavender.

Planting Calendar for Lavender

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

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

The earliest that you can plant lavender in Los Banos 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 lavender and expect a good harvest is probably October. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your lavender may not have a chance to fully mature. Starting your lavender indoors is a great way to get them started a few weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

In Los Banos the average date of last frost happens on February 15. In the coldest months of winter you can expect an average low temperature of 20°F.

Remember that the actual date of last frost is an average because it is based on the USDA zone info for Los Banos and it changes 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 protect your lavender if you have a surprise 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.