The USDA Zone info is a great tool for gardeners to help us determine your gardening schedule. The zone info helps tell us things like average date of last frost and lowest expected temperature for your area.

One way of estimating when it's the best time to plant tropical water plants is to consult the USDA zone info for Palo Alto.

Planting Calendar for Tropical Water Plants

Frost tolerance for tropical water plants:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After the last frost has passed.

Tropical Water Plants require warm weather which tells us that you really should wait until it warms up after all chance of frost has passed before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant tropical water plants 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 tropical water plants and expect a good harvest is probably September. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your tropical water plants may not have a chance to grow to maturity. If you are starting your tropical water plants indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a few weeks earlier.

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 USDA zone info for Palo Alto may not be accurate from year to year and the actual date of last frost changes from year to year. Half of the time in Palo Alto you get a frost after February 15 so always be ready to cover your tropical water plants in the event of one of those late frosts.

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.