Before planting it is a good idea to find your USDA Zone info to estimate your garden schedule. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

By looking at the USDA zone info for Palm Desert you should be able to figure out when it's a good idea to plant okra.

Planting Calendar for Okra

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

Since okra require warm weather it is important to wait until after the last frost has passed before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant okra 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 okra and expect a good harvest is probably September. Any later than that and your okra may not have a chance to grow to maturity. If you are starting your okra indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a couple of weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

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

Remember that the actual date of last frost is an average because it is based on the USDA zone info for Palm Desert and it will vary from year to year. Half of the time in Palm Desert it frosts late in the year after February 15 so always be ready to cover your okra in the event of a surprise 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.