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.

The earliest that you can plant firebush in Merced should be determined by checking out the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Firebush

Frost tolerance for firebush:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After the last frost.

You can not plant firebush until after all chance of frost has passed because they require warm weather.

The earliest that you can plant firebush in Merced 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 firebush and expect a good harvest is probably September. If you wait any later than that and your firebush may not have a chance to really do well. You can get started a couple of weeks earlier by starting your firebush indoors.

Last Frost Date

In Merced 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.

It's important to remember that the actual date of last frost is just an average because it is based on the USDA zone info for Merced and it will vary from year to year. Since half of the time in Merced there is a last frost after February 15 be ready to protect your firebush if you have a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Merced

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 Merced

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