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.

The earliest that you can plant gherkins in Palm Desert should be determined by referring to the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Gherkins

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

Gherkins require warm weather which tells us that you have to wait until it warms up after all chance of frost has passed before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant gherkins 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 gherkins and expect a good harvest is probably September. Any later than that and your gherkins may not have a chance to grow to maturity. Starting your gherkins indoors is a great way to get them started a few weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost is on February 15 in Palm Desert. It might get as low as 25°F during the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Palm Desert is just an average the actual date of last frost can change quite a bit from year to year. Since half of the time in Palm Desert you get a frost after February 15 be ready to protect your gherkins in the event of a late frost.

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.