One of the first steps you take when you are making a decision about 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.

By checking out the USDA zone info for Merced you should be able to determine when it's a good idea to plant stevia.

Planting Calendar for Stevia

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

Since stevia are not cold tolerant it is important to wait until after the last frost when the weather gets warmer before you can plant them.

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

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.

Remember that the actual date of last frost is not always accurate because it is based on the USDA zone info for Merced and it can change quite a bit from year to year. Half of the time in Merced you get surprised by a frost after February 15 so always be ready to cover your stevia 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.