Before planting it is a good idea to find your USDA Zone info to determine your garden schedule. The most important data that the zone info tells us is average last frost and the lowest expected temperature for your area.

A way of estimating when to plant lemon balm is to check out the USDA zone info for Mission Viejo.

Planting Calendar for Lemon balm

Frost tolerance for lemon balm:	Tolerant of a very small amount of frost.
When to plant:	Up to 3 weeks before last frost.

Lemon balm are one of those plants that can tolerate a tiny bit of cold weather which means that you can get them planted just a bit earlier than other frost tender plants.

The earliest that you can plant lemon balm in Mission Viejo is February. However, you really should wait until March if you don't want to take any chances.

The last month that you can plant lemon balm and expect a good harvest is probably September. Any later than that and your lemon balm may not have a chance to really do well. You can get started a few weeks earlier by starting your lemon balm indoors.

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost has passed is on January 31 in Mission Viejo. In the coldest months of winter you should expect an average low temperature of 35°F.

Keep in mind that the actual date of last frost is not always accurate because it is based on the USDA zone info for Mission Viejo and it changes from year to year. Since half of the time in Mission Viejo there is a last frost after January 31 be ready to cover your lemon balm in the event of a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Mission Viejo

Here is the info for USDA Zone 10b.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	January 31
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	December 15
Lowest Expected Low	35°F
Highest Expected Low	40°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is 35°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near 40°F.

Plants to Grow in Mission Viejo

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Mission Viejo.