The USDA Zone info is a great tool for gardeners to help us estimate 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.

In Palo Alto you can figure out when it's possible to plant schizanthus by referring to the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Schizanthus

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

Since schizanthus are not cold tolerant it's important to wait until after the last frost before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant schizanthus in Palo Alto 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 schizanthus and expect a good harvest is probably September. If you wait any later than that and your schizanthus may not have a chance to grow to maturity. You can get started a little bit earlier by starting your schizanthus indoors.

Last Frost Date

In Palo Alto the average date of last frost happens on February 15. It might get as low as 25°F during the coldest months of winter.

Just be sure to remember that the actual date of last frost is just an average because it is based on the USDA zone info for Palo Alto and it can change quite a bit from year to year. Half of the time in Palo Alto there is a last frost after February 15 so make sure that you are prepared to cover your schizanthus if you have 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.