The USDA Zone info is a great tool for gardeners to help us determine your gardening schedule. The most important data that the zone info tells us is average last frost and the lowest expected temperature for your area.

The first opportunity to plant cuphea in Palm Desert should be figured out by checking out the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Cuphea

Frost tolerance for cuphea:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After the last frost when the weather gets warmer.

Cuphea are not cold tolerant which means that it is necessary to wait until it warms up after the last frost before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant cuphea in Palm Desert 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 cuphea and expect a good harvest is probably September. Any later than that and your cuphea may not have a chance to really do well. You can get started a little bit earlier by starting your cuphea indoors.

Last Frost Date

The average date of last frost is February 15 in Palm Desert. You should expect an average low temperature of 25°F in the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Palm Desert is not always accurate the actual date of last frost is different every year. Half of the time in Palm Desert you get a frost after February 15 so always be ready to protect your cuphea if you have one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Palm Desert

Here is the info for USDA Zone 9b.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	February 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	December 15
Lowest Expected Low	25°F
Highest Expected Low	30°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is 25°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near 30°F.

Plants to Grow in Palm Desert

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Palm Desert.