One of the first steps you take when you are estimating 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.

The first opportunity to plant dusty miller in Palo Alto should be estimated by referring to the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Dusty Miller

Frost tolerance for dusty miller:	Very tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	Up to 7 weeks before last frost.

Since dusty miller do well in cold you can plant them a lot earlier in the year than more sensitive plants.

The earliest that you can plant dusty miller in Palo Alto is January. However, you really should wait until February if you don't want to take any chances.

The last month that you can plant dusty miller and expect a good harvest is probably October. If you wait any later than that and your dusty miller may not have a chance to fully mature. Starting your dusty miller 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 Palo Alto. You should expect an average low temperature of 25°F in the coldest months of winter.

It's important to remember that USDA zone info for Palo Alto is just an average and the actual date of last frost changes from year to year. Half of the time in Palo Alto you get surprised by a frost after February 15 so make sure that you are ready to protect your dusty miller in the event of a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Palo Alto

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 Palo Alto

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Palo Alto.