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.

The first chance to plant asters in Shafter can be determined by referring to the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Asters

Frost tolerance for asters:	Tolerant of some frost.
When to plant:	Up to 5 weeks before last frost.

Asters do well in moderate cold which means that you can plant them a little bit earlier than plants that are more sensitive to the cold.

The earliest that you can plant asters in Shafter 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 asters and expect a good harvest is probably October. Any later than that and your asters may not have a chance to really do well. If you are starting your asters indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a few weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost when the weather gets warmer is on February 15 in Shafter. It might get as low as 20°F during the coldest months of winter.

Keep in mind that the actual date of last frost is not always accurate because it is based on the USDA zone info for Shafter and it changes from year to year. Since half of the time in Shafter there is a last frost after February 15 be ready to cover your asters if you have a late frost.

USDA Zone Info for Shafter

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 Shafter

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