One of the best tools that you have as gardeners to help us estimate 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 first opportunity to plant okra in Merced can be estimated by referring to the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Okra

Frost tolerance for okra:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After all chance of frost has passed.

You can not plant okra until after the last frost when the weather gets warmer because they require warm weather.

The earliest that you can plant okra 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 okra and expect a good harvest is probably September. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your okra may not have a chance to grow to maturity. Starting your okra indoors is a great way to get them started a little bit earlier.

Last Frost Date

In Merced 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 Merced is just an average the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Since half of the time in Merced you get a frost after February 15 be ready to cover your okra in the event of a surprise 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.