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.

A way of making a decision about when it's a good idea to plant arabis is to consult the USDA zone info for Selma.

Planting Calendar for Arabis

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

Since arabis are very cold tolerant you can plant them earlier in the year than other frost tender plants.

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

Last Frost Date

In Selma the average date of last frost happens on February 15. It might get as low as 20°F during the coldest months of winter.

Since the USDA zone info for Selma is just an average the actual date of last frost is different every year. Since half of the time in Selma last frost occurs after February 15 be ready to protect your arabis if you have one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Selma

Here is the info for USDA Zone 9a.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	February 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	December 15
Lowest Expected Low	20°F
Highest Expected Low	25°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is 20°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near 25°F.

Plants to Grow in Selma

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Selma.