The USDA Zone info is a great tool for gardeners to help us figure out 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 common way of estimating when to plant corn is to check out the USDA zone info for Shafter.

Planting Calendar for Corn

Frost tolerance for corn:	Not tolerant of frost.
When to plant:	After all chance of frost has passed.

Corn are not cold tolerant which means that you need to wait until it warms up after the last frost when the weather gets warmer before you can plant them.

The earliest that you can plant corn in Shafter 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 corn and expect a good harvest is probably September. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your corn may not have a chance to grow to maturity. Starting your corn indoors is a great way to get them started a few weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

On average all chance of frost has passed is on February 15 in Shafter. It might get as low as 20°F during the coldest months of winter.

It's important to remember that the actual date of last frost is an average because it is based on the USDA zone info for Shafter and it is different every year. Half of the time in Shafter last frost occurs after February 15 so be sure to be ready to protect your corn in the event of 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.