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.

The first chance to plant pincushion flower in Merced should be figured out by reviewing the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Pincushion Flower

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

Pincushion Flower are moderately cold tolerant which tells us that you can plant them earlier than more sensitive plants.

The earliest that you can plant pincushion flower in Merced 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 pincushion flower and expect a good harvest is probably October. If you wait any later than that and your pincushion flower may not have a chance to really do well. Starting your pincushion flower indoors is a great way to get them started a little bit earlier.

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost is on February 15 in Merced. You can expect an average low temperature of 20°F in the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Merced is just an average the actual date of last frost changes from year to year. Half of the time in Merced you get a frost after February 15 so make sure that you are ready to cover your pincushion flower in the event of 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.